Chinese Churches in Thailand

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CHINESE CHURCHES IN THAILAND

Carl Edwin Blanford

SURIYABAN

Suriyaban Publishers 14 Pramuan Road

PUBLISHERS Bangkok, Thailand

V

In Loving Memory of my MOTHER AND FATHER who let me dedicate my life for the Evangelization of the Chinese

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FOREWORD

The publication of this timely and fact-filled volume is going to dispel some widespread myths and strengthen some deep convictions within the world-wide Christian community. For this reason we are most pleased that it has been published. We cannot but pray that its message will reach all those particularly concerned with the advancement of the Christian movement among the Chinese. First, what are the myths this book seeks to dispel? They largely center on the rumor that in our day the Chinese community, scattered as it is throughout the world, but particularly in Southeast Asia, is unusually receptive to the Christian faith. It is easy to attract Chinese youth to Bible study groups and to bring them to personal commitment to Jesus Christ. In turn, they become strong members of growing and multiplying churches. Many of the best qualified are urged by their families and fellow Christians to prepare for “full-time” Christian service. Those who do are increasingly being drawn to the missionary vocation. And the probability is that when mainland China opens her doors to Gospel preachers, thousands of overseas Chinese will be found ready to return to the land of their fathers. While there isameasureoftruthinall of these affirmations, and selective data can be brought to their support, this careful study reveals that the Chinese are not unlike many other peoples making up the world’s mosaic. Some are responsive, others are not. Some young people are easily won and persevere in their discipleship. However, even among the most promising converts, the claims of marriage, family and career coupled with the desire to achieve financial security all too often take their toll. And for a gifted Chinese young person to seek formal training to enter the Christian ministry—well, this resolve more often than not i s carried out in the face of strong family pressure that he seek a “secular” calling. Whereas we rejoice over all the exceptions to the above generalizations, it i s incumbent on us that we take the full measure of the thrust of

vm this book, and recognize that for the Christian community to grow among the Chinese requires hard work, self-denial and much spiritual conflict. Second, what are the convictions that this study seeks to establish? Central i s the growing awareness that in our day God is reaching after the Chinese with His loveand Gospel in a most remarkable way. One senses that no earlier generation has witnessed such a variety of efforts to win them. And yet, this study reveals that to participate with God in the winning of Chinese to faith in Christ involves diligent effort a s well as triumphant faith. In Thailand only those Chinese churches grow that want to grow. And they only grow because their desire for growth has been translated into the radical rearrangement of the priorities of scores of lay Christians. This has involved the devotion of heart, of time and of' financial resources to the task. It has demanded of them not only hours spent in seeking adequate preparation for the task but the sort of devotion to Jesus Christ that makes this sacrificial outreach possible. All of us stand in debt to Carl Edwin Blanford for this lucid book. His long years of faithful service on behalf of the Chinese, his mastery of their language, his deep appreciation of their culture, and his commitment to their evangelization uniquely qualify him to be our mentor. He has reminded us of the potential for good and for God resident in this dominant and gifted segment of the human race. And in reviewing for us the labors of men and women- of earlier generations, and of today, to reach this people with the Gospel, he has challenged us: “Do not admire their vision and achievements. Rather, imitate their faith, for Jesus Christ i s the same yesterday and today and forever” (Hebrews 13:7, 8). Arthur F. Glasser Dean School of World Mission Fuller Theological Seminary Pasadena, California

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TABLE Foreword Tables' Maps Graphs Preface Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Chapter’ 4 Chapter 5 Chapter 6 Chapter 7-

OF CONTENTS 'J

vii x " ■ ' *' / ..x j ‘ '■ ' x jj " ' • ■ < •* ’• - l 5 xiii ! Jews of’ the West and "Jews of- the East" ... .:. ..'51 Immigration In Historical Perspective ........... 9 Chinese Life i n Thailand’ ...»-:..J .-............... 17 Chinese Baptist Churches .-.......... ’...32 Presbyterian Chinese Churches' ;.. ... ............... -.’SB Other Chinese Churches .“........... L. .. t ............. 58 Missions: First Neglect, Then ■ } -J - • ' Discouragement ......■. ... ... -... ... 63 : Chapter 8 Growth of Thai’and ChiheseChUrches Compared 70 Chapter9 Chinese' Concern for Education ... 81 Chapter 10 Indigenous' Cultural Adaptations . . . . . . . . . 84 Chapter 11 Who W i l l Solve the Leadership Problem?' 1, 95 Chapter 1 2 Strategy for Greater Growth .......... ..; ... 101 Chapter 1 3 Preparation for Political' Change ?.. 113 1 c Appendices ” * - ‘ ' 123 Bibliography 149 ' ' '

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TABLES Table 1, Table 2 Table 3 Table 4 Table 5 Table 6 Table 7 Table 8 Table S Table 10 Table 11 Table 1 2 Table 1 3 Table 14 Table 15 Table 1 6 Table 17

Number of Chinese in Southeast Asian Countries ... Size of Chinese Community in Thailand Causes of Emigration from China ....................... ... Chinese Schools i n Thailand ............................. ... Chinese Speech Groups in Thailand ... Percentage of Thai and Chinese in Various Occupations . . . . ........................ Chinese Baptist Churches, .Twelfth District, OCT ... Sapan Luang Church Membership Figures Enrollment at Chiao Kwang Primary School Enrollment at Chiao- Kwang Middle School Sathorn Church Membership Figures . , . . Seventh District Churches, CCT ... ... Comparison of Thai and Chinese Membership, CCT "Double the. Church" figures by. Districts ... .Comparison of Thai and Chinese "Double , , the Church" Figures .. . . ............... Comparison pf -Seventh District Churches ...... Survey of Chinese Full-time Church Workers,,

.5 11 12 14 18 19 ■ 35 42 44 45 49 53 73 74 75 j77 98

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MAPS Map Map Map Map Map Map

1 2 3 4 5 6

Province's and Ports of Chinese Emigration . ......,• Location of Twelfth District Churches ... . ................ Location of Haadyai. Young People in Christian Work . Location of Seventh District Churches . .................... Location of other CCT, Chinese .Churches, ... ... ... ... Location of non-CCT Chinese Churches ... . ............... S. . *'

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- * "

• . v.

■- ...

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1. >■

16 37 54 56 60 62

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GRAPHS Memberhip Comparison of Sapan Luang Church and Rest of Seventh District Churches .................. ; 43 Graph 2 Sathorn Church Membership, 1948-1973 ............. 48 Graph 3 Membership Increase of Church of Christ in Thailand, 1920-1973 .................................................. 69 Graph 4 Growth Rate of Thai and Chinese Churches 71 Compared .................................................. Graph 5 Comparison of the Percentage of Thai and Chinese in the CCT ..................................................... 72 Church Graph 6 Comparison of Growth Rate of Sapan Luang with Rest of the Seventh District Churches ............ 76 Graph 1

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PREFACE This book has been written because of my earnest concern for the evangelization of the Chinese people in Thailand. A survey of the history of the various Protestant missions in Thailand clearly indicates that the Chinese people have r e s ponded to the Gospel more readily than the Thai people. The Chinese churches have shown a faster rate of growth than the Thai churches, especially in the thirty years since the end of the Japanese War. However, the Chinese churches in Thailand have grown much slower than those in Taiwan, Hongkong, the Philippines, Singapore, Malaysia, and Indonesia. The Chinese in all these Southeast Asian countries come from the same general areas of mainland China. They have the same social, religious, and cultural background. Why are the Chinese slower in responding to Christ in Thailand than in other places? I s it because of the Buddhist environment in Thailand? I s it because of the neglect of Christian missions? Is it because the Chinese Christians, like other Chinese, are so busy trying to make money that they neglect their own spiritual life and show little concern for the spiritual welfare of others? The experience of the Chinese in their dispersion throughout the world i s similar to that of God’s chosen people, the Jews. Both peoples face discrimination, endure undeserved suffering, meet racial and religious prejudice, and are often despised by the majority peoples around them. But God loves them, and His providence and grace can be seen in their history. Thus God’s message to the Jews in exile is very relevant to the scattered Chinese today: “I know the plans I have for you, says the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope” (Jer. 29:11 RSV). The future belongs to the Chinese, and especially to the Chinese Christians. I hope and pray that some of the suggestions offered here will lead to the multiplication of new churches by Chinese Christians in Thailand, in Southeast Asia, in China, and even throughout the world.

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1 JEWS OF THE WEST AND "JEWS OF THE EAST” Bishop Stephen Neill in his book, The Unfinished task, says that the purpose of God which was fulfilled in the history of Israel was twofold: first, the provision of a homeland, within which the Son of God could be born and grow and accomplish his work; and secondly, the preparation through the Diaspora of a wider world in which the Gospel could quickly take root, and in which the Church could quickly develop to such maturity a s would enable it to survive both the destruction of the Jewish nation and the collapse of the Roman Empire (Neill 1957:29). We are well acquainted with the acts of God fulfilling the first purpose that Neill mentions, as they are recorded in the Old and New Testaments. As regards the second point, little i s found in the Biblical records. There are accounts of the Babylonian captivity, with the prophetic message of Jeremiah addressed to them. There is the witness of Daniel and his friends to the Babylonian captors. There i s the witness of Esther and Mordecai. And there are the accounts of the return of the Israelites to Palestine in Ezra and Nehemiah, followed

2 by the messages of the prophets Haggai, Zechariah, and Malachi. But there i s no record in the Old Testament of the widespread dispersion of the Jews that took place during that time. However, we now have records showing that before the time of Christ, there were Jewish colonies in China, India, Ceylon, Arabia, Persia, Ethiopia, along the East Coast of Africa, and' in all the countries around the Mediterranean Sea. Wherever they went, they maintained both their ethnic sense of being a separate people and their religious sense of belonging to Yahweh, the Creator of heaven and earth. Perhaps because they regarded God a s the God of all the earth, they could feel at home anyplace. Especially interesting i s the existence of Jewish colonies in China. China was known to the Jews in the days of Isaiah, being mentioned in Isaiah 49:12 by the name ofSinim. Silk, which came only from China, is mentioned in Ezek. 16:10, 13. Perhaps it was in connection with the silk trade that the Jews first travelled to China. From the time of the Han dynasty (206 B.C.-221 A.D.), there are records of a Jewish colony at K’ai-feng, Honan. This colony continued in existence up until the first part of the nineteenth century (White 1966:32). The pattern of their synagogue there resembled more the pattern of Solomon’s temple than the pattern of the synagogue structures found elsewhere (DeRidder 1971:61). They claimed themselves to be the descendants of Abraham, and perpetuated Jewish customs and religious worship, until the community ceased to exist because of gradual migration of its members to other places. The widespread scattering of the Israelites had great significance in the development of the Jewish religion and in the rapid spread of Christianity a s recorded in the book of Acts. The prophets interpreted the scattering as an inevitable punishment for their rebellion toward God and disobedience to his covenant (Lev. 26:33; Deut. 4:27, 28:64, 30:1-3; Jer. 9:12-16). Rabbi Eleazar had another interpretation when he said, “The Holy One, Blessed be He, dispersed Israel among the nations in’ order that proselytes should be added to them” (DeRidder 1971:75).

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How did the Jews maintain their distinctive religious beliefs when they lived in scattered minority groups among pagan and idolatrous peoples? Their secret i s found in (1) .their home religious practices, and (2) the establishing of synagogues and Sabbath observance. The Jews in dispersion protected their families from Gentile influence by their family prayers led by the father a s the priestly head of the house, and by the weekly religious ceremonies where preparations were made by the mother. It was the high quality of Jewish homes that attracted many Gentiles to the Jewish faith in the Roman Empire. The establishment of synagogues for community worship and to serve a s religious schools also buttressed the Jewish community against influence by other religions. It was here also that the Gentiles who were interested heard the Jewish scriptures read and explained and learned what it meant to live according to God’s law. The early Christian missionaries first approached the synagogues of the dispersed Jews to present their message in new places. It was in the synagogue among the Gentile proselytes and “God-fearers” that they found receptive people open for the Gospel. Then through them they had further entrance into the wider Gentile communities. The Apostle Paul borrowed the synagogue model of worship and organization for use in the establishment of Christian, churches throughout the Roman Empire. Another development of the faith of Israel resulting from the dispersion was that they still considered themselves a s God’s people, even though they were separated from Jerusalem, their spiritual capital. They learned that political loyalty was not the same as religious loyalty. They could become loyal citizens of the countries where they lived, and religiously still be faithful to God alone.

4 And finally, their living in the midst of the nations resulted in the translation of the Old Testament Scriptures into other languages.

A SPECIAL MESSAGE TO THE EXILES The prophet Jeremiah had a special message from God to the Israelite exiles in Babylon (Jer. 29:1-14), and this message has much to say to migrant peoples of our day as well. Some of the important things to note are: (1) It was God who sent them into exile (verse 4). God was working in their circumstances according to his plan (v. 11). This helps people to look beyond the seeming meaninglessness of their experiences, and find a wisdom greater than their own at work in their lives, (2) They were to establish themselves in the foreign land by building houses, planting crops, and raising families (v 5-6). They were to increase their numbers and their wealth wherever they were. This implied God’s blessing on their homes and their work-., (3) They were to seek the welfare of the countries in which they were scattered, and to pray for God’s blessing of peace and prosperity upon the Gentiles around them (v. 7). The promise given to Abraham that God wouldblessall the families of the earth through him would be partially filfilled through Abraham’s descendants in the dispersion. (4) God would hear their prayers wherever they prayed, if they turned to him in sincerity (v. 12-13). They would become aware of God’s omnipresence in new ways, even in foreign lands. (g) God promised to gather them from all {he places of dispersion and to restore them to their original homeland (v. 10, 14). Thus they had hope for a wonderful future.

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God’s activity of scattering his people among the nations i s not only found in the history of the Jews. In the past two hundred years, in the Protestant missionary movement, God has been moving his people to go out into every country of the world to proclaim the Gospel to all ethnic peoples, to persuade them to become Christ’s followers, and to lead them to participation in Christ’s church. In our day Christian believers from many nations are going to other nations, not only a s sent missionaries, but in business, a s government representatives, as United Nations officials, and in other capacities. Some Christians have to migrate from one place to another to escape war or famine, or to find a new place to make a living. God i s planting his people in the midst of all nations, a s a witness for his truth, to bring blessing to all people, and to gather all his people together into his glorious kingdom. The message of Jeremiah 29 has great relevance for all the dispersed and scattered Christians of our day.

THE CHINESE AMONG THE NATIONS There i s another people scattered among the nations todayof whom Christians should become aware. These are the Chinese. There have been Chinese merchants and traders from south China in Southeast Asia for several hundred years, but their numbers have greatly increased in the past sixty years. Table 1 shows the estimated- number of Chinese in the Southeast Asian countries. TABLE 1

Cambodia ’ Thailand Malaysia. Indonesia Singapore Philippines Burma Laos South Vietnam

425,000 2,548,000 2,402,300 2,600,000 1,579,966 400,000 400,000 45,000 600,000

6 Since the Communist takeover of mainland China, several million Chinese have migrated to Hong Kong, Korea, Japan, Germany, France, England, Canada, United States, Australia, New Zealand, Brazil, and many other places. There are probably very few countries in the world today where there are no Chinese. What is God’s purpose in this widespread dispersion of the Chinese people? Is it not to give them an opportunity to live in places where they can hear the Gospel and come to know Christ? Is it not to give Christians a chance to show Christ’s love to these people who have suffered so greatly and who feel a s strangers in strange lands? We Christians should be able to understand and sympathize with the Chinese in dispersion. The Chinese with their six thousand years of highly developed civilization, isolated from other peoples, have tended to regard their country a s the center of the universe (China i s xj* [a] the Middle Kingdom), and all other peoples as barbarians. In fact, their slang word' for all non-Chinese wherever they go i s ■$- A. ‘barbarian.’ However, God has given the Chinese a psychological preparation for living among other peoples in at least two of their common proverbs:

“All under family.”

heaven are one

“Within the four seas, all are brothers” (Confucius Analects XII:V:4) (Plopper 1969:2).

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The scattered Chinese, recalling these sayings, should be able to live peacefully with people in any country. More than that, they should be able to understand that -all peoples have one Heavenly Father, and that all believers in Christ are spiritual brothers and members of the household of God. The overseas Chinese have often been referred to a s “the Jews of the East,” and suffered some of the same discrimination and prejudice that the Jews have faced for centuries. In 1914 King Vajiravudh (Rama IV) of Thailand published some articles entitled, “The Jews of the East.” In these he criticized the Chinese and tried to arouse popular feeling against them in Thailand. Some of the similarities of these two peoples in his writings were: (1) The first similarity between the Chinese and the Jews is in the matter of ‘racial loyalty.’ No matter where they live, what nationality they assume, Chinese remain essentially Chinese. » *

(2) The Chinese, like the Jews, are an ancient race, whose high civilization was developed at a time when our ancestors had not emerged from savagery.... In their contact with barbarians, the Chinese recognize no right or wrong; nor do the Jews in dealing with the Gentiles. (3) Chinese, like Jews, are willing to undergo any sort of privation for the sake of money. Because of their business acumen, the Chinese control most of the economy of the countries in Southeast Asia. King Vajiravudh said further, “The Chinese, having a national home (1914), are not unduly interested in the politics of other countries. Should they lose their national home through some calamity, they will become the occasion of serious disorders" (Purcell 1965:120, italics added). Many of these overseas Chinese feel that they have lost their national home. Taiwan i s not their homeland, nor do they want to return to Communist China.

8 The Chinese home i s the secret of Chinese strength in their dispersion, just as the Jewish home i s so vital in the Jews’ maintenance of their own religious and cultural distinctiveness in their dispersion among the nations. The strength of the Chinese home i s found in their Confucian ethic of filial piety, veneration of ancestors, and family harmony under the leadership of the father. Haines makes the following summary of similarities between the Chinese Diaspora and the Jews: It is often said that the Chinese Diaspora has many great similarities to that of the Jewish nation, because the Chinese and the Jews have in common a great ability to adapt themselves to their environment, a keen business sense, a common classical language, and a tenacity for work which i s equalled only by their patience. Some overseas Chinese, like Jews, who are scattered over the world, are haunted in the depth of their hearts by the desire to see their homeland once again, even though the realization of this desire i s often put off indefinitely for political or economic reasons (Haines 1965:31). R. Pierce Beaver said that “Churches and missions have a threefold responsibility toward the large immigrant minorities in the world today (Chinese, Indian, Batak, etc.): (1) to introduce Christ to them and bring them the gospel, (2) to champion them against the injustice, so widely practiced against them, (3) and to help them integrate into the national community and its culture” (Beaver 1968:101).

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2 IMMIGRATION IN HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE The Chinese have been bound up with the life and trade of Thailand for at least 700 years (Purcell 1965:86). When the Portuguese first arrived in the Far East in 1518, they found Chinese shippers and traders in many places, including the countries now known as the Philippines, Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, Vietnamj and Thailand. These Chinese came by sea from the southern seacoast cities of Canton, Swatow, Amoy, Foochow, and Hainan Island. In the seventeenth century Chinese were migrating to Thailand at the rate of 4,000-5,000 annually, and at the turn of the present century, the rate had increased to 19,000 annually (Moore 1974:39). Many stayed for only a short time to engage in trading, to build ships, and to return to China with their goods and profits. Until the middle of the nineteenth century, the Emperor prohibited emigration from China and those who departed illegally were treated a s outcasts (Coughlin 1960:15). One of the results of this policy was that those who stayed in Thailand for longer periods of time married Thai women, and established homes in Thailand a s well a s in China. The children of these Chinese-Siamese marriages usually remained in Thailand, and grew up fully assimilated into Thai society (Purcell 1965:115).

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- One of these was Taksin, whose father was a Teochiu taxfarmer named Hai Hong. He became an army leader and routed the Burmese who had invaded Siam and sacked the royal capital at Ayuthia in 1767. Then .Taksin united the kingdom under his rule and set up his capital at Thoriburi, now-a part of Bangkok (Landon 1941:7). He was able to rule for only fifteen years, when a conspiracy was formed against him and he was put to death. His Chinese blood was one of the factors that his enemies used to rally support for his overthrow. However, his son-in-law, Chao Phya Chakri (1782-1809) was made king, and became founder of the Chakri dynasty, which is still reigning today. It is said that the Chakri family itself has an admixture of Chinese blood, and there were Chinese women in the harems of the- later kings (Ibid 1941:8). Following the Opium War with Britain in 1842; China was forced to grant Westerners the privilege of travel and residence in China. As a consequence Europeans began to recruit Chinese laborers for their rapidly expanding colonial possessions in Southeast Asia. The restrictive policies of the Chinese government toward emigration were officially abrogated in '1894 (Coughlin 1960:15). The commercial expansion of the European countries also benefited the Chinese shippers and merchants, who became middlemen between the the Western companies and the native populations of the- Various southeast Asian countries. In Thailand especially, the Thai lack of interest in anything but- farming and government occupations allowed the Chinese to acquire prominent positions in trade, banking, and industrial enterprises (Moore 1974:6). They had a monopoly on rice milling and export in central Thailand and had large holdings of tin and rubber in south Thailand. Beginning with King Taksin’s reign and through the nineteenth century, Chinese who demonstrated marked ability or acquired localized power were ennobled and appointed to administrative posts. It seems that many Chinese of riches or influence were given noble rank, thus insuring their loyalty to the King, Their daughters were prized by Thai government officials because of their light complexion, and their sons had

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opportunity to enter the government bureaucracy. In this way the 'government succeeded in gaining the support of-the Chinese elite and their descendants (Skinner 1958:8). Until the Chinese Revolution in 1911, the vast majority of Chinese immigrants were single males, who came, often with the encouragement of the Thai government, to take up occupations in which the Thai themselves showed little interest. After that, however, large numbers of Chinese’women came. to set up homes with their husbands in Thailand, and more d i s tinctly Chinese communities sprang up in Bangkok and in all the major towns and cities of the country. An idea of the increase of the number of Chinese living in Thailand can be gained from Table 2. TABLE 2

Chinese Community in Thailand Year 1660 1825 1850 1910 1918 1931 1955■ *

■ No. Persons 10,000 230,000 300,000 800;000 1,000,0001,500,000 2,350,000 (Skinner 1957: tables 2, 5,- 6, 8)

PRESSURES TO EMIGRATE FROM CHINA . . Professor Chen Ta made a study in 1934 of some villages in eastern Kwangtiing and southern Fukien to determine the causes for emigration of families from that area to Nan Yang (South Seas). In a survey of 905 families,- he found the following causes named:

12 TABLE 3

Cause 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8.

Economic pressure Previous connection with Nan Yang Losses from natural calamities Plan to expand specific enterprise Bad conduct Local disturbance Family quarrel Other causes

bIo. Families 633 176 31 26 17 7 7 8

Percent 69.95% 19.45 3.43 2.87 1.88 .77 .77 .88

Out of the 905 families, 353 individuals were said to be without regular employment in their original areas (Chen 1940:61). Economic pressures arose in that area because of an increasing population in a limited geographical area where expansion was limited by the mountains on one side and by the ocean on the other. At the same time people from those areas who had gone overseas sent back reports of the opportunities to improve their economic status in the new countries. The result was. that some of the more adventurous left to seek employment overseas. Geographic, linguistic, and clan factors are observable in the patterns of immigration. Those who went first opened the way for more relatives and friends from the same area to join them. For this reason, many of the earlier Chinese immigrants to the U.S. were from the Tai Shan area near Canton. Most of the Chinese in the Philippines were from Amoy, and most of those in Thailand were from the Swatow area.

WELCOME IN THAILAND Thailand, for its part, welcomed Chinese immigrants until the early part of the twentieth century in order to meet the growing need for non-agricultural labor that was created by the country’s expanding commerce. Thailand’s main exports in the

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past century have been rice, rubber, tin, and teak wood. The Chinese were deeply involved in developing all of these exports. Later, when the Thai saw the prosperity of the Chinese and realized that much of the country’s economy was in their hands, they became alarmed, and enacted measures to restrict further immigration (Moore 1974:79). Since 1910 the Chinese have made up about 10% of the total population of Thailand. This includes both China -born and Thaiborn Chinese- speaking peoples. The increasing size of the Chinese community was considered a threat to the government, and immigration restrictions, passed in 1937, began to be enforced in 1947. In 1947 and 1948 a quota of 10,000 Chinese immigrants was permitted. All other nations were limited to 200 each. In 1949 the Chinese quota was also reduced to 200, so that in the past 25 years the number of new Chinese immigrants has sharply declined. It was estimated in 1955 that about one-third of the Chinese in Thailand were born in China. In 1975 the number i s probably only about 10%. Children of aliens born in Thailand are all Thai citizens by- birth. After the takeover of the Chinese mainland by the Communists in 1949, and the decline in value of the Chinese Nationalist passport a s more and more countries gave diplomatic recognition to Red China, Thailand-born Chinese have been glad to be citizens of Thailand and to carry Thai passports for travel abroad. Also, because of the Communist changes on the Mainland, many Chinese in Thailand have decreased the amount of money sent there, -and invested it in their business ventures in Thailand instead. This has given a great boost to the economic development of Thailand in the past 25 years. Many of the older Chinese who used to think of returning to China with their families now regard Thailand as the place holding the most hope for their children and grandchildren. Another factor contributing to Chinese adjustment to Thailand has been the government’s policy of restricting schools in the

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Chinese language. In 1948 all Chinese secondary schools were closed. In the primary schools (grades 1-4) ten hours a week in Chinese were permitted, while more than twenty hours a week in Thai were required. Education from the fifth grade up i s entirely in Thai, with English taught as a foreign language. Chinese parents are thus faced with the alternatives of educating their children in the Thai language and Thai school system, or not educating them beyond the fourth grade (except for the few who are able to send them to Hongkong or Taiwan).

TABLE 4

Chinese Schools in Thailand Year 1948 1958 1966

No. Schools 450 185 167

Enrollment Section 100,000 Primary, Secondary 63,000 Primary 40,000 Primary (Moore. 1974:258)

The Thai government has sought to restrict Chinese business activities by limiting them to certain occupations and reserving certain occupations for Thai nationals. Laws have been passed requiring a certain number of Thai workers in businesses and factories of a certain size and larger. Finally, in 1972 new laws were passed regulating alien occupations, and requiring work permits for all aliens. It must be noted that in all these legal restrictions, the Chinese are not singled out, but all foreign immigration, education, and business activity are affected. However, because the Chinese are the largest foreign group in Thailand, they feel the laws were passed primarily to regulate them. The Chinese do not complain that they are unable to marry Thai girls, or get jobs with the government, or enter the universities, or join Thai clubs —but rather that they are not permitted to run their own schools, businesses, and associations as they wish (Coughlin 1960:199).

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In assessing Chinese assimilation into Thai society and the relations between Thai and Chinese, Richard Coughlin makes these perceptive statements: The outstanding fact about the Chinese in Thailand i s not their stubborn retention of Chinese cultural forms, but their ability to participate successfully, without evidence of social or psychological disorganization or feelings of marginality, a s dual members of their own community and of Thai society as well. The Chinese in Thailand are not an oppressed group, and their only hope for a peaceful future i s to seek a closer identification with the national interests of Thailand (1960: viii).

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MAP 1

Provinces and Ports of Chinese Emigration k ) r

> Shansi

I $ .J-*

Kansu

J

Shantung

Shensi Henan

{ Anhwei )

Szechwan

)

Hupeh

/

/

W,

Hunan

Kweichow

Taiwan rior.'-kcng 0 T3 C 1

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3 CHINESE LIFE IN THAILAND LINGUISTIC DISTRIBUTION The Chinese in Thailand are divided into five major speech groups: Teochiu, Hakka, Hainanese, Cantonese, and Hokkien. The Hokkiens (from southern Fukien) were the first to come in numbers, closely followed historically by the Cantonese in considerably fewer numbers. In the eighteenth century, especially during and after the reign of King Taksin, there was a large influx of Teochius. As a result, from the founding of the present Chakri dynasty with Bangkok as capital, there has been a large predominance of Teochius in both the capital city and the country as a whole (Skinner 1958:4). Hainanese (from Hainan Island) began trading with Siam in the eighteenth century and settled in some numbers beginning in the early nineteenth century. The Hakkas (from interior parts of northern Kwangtung and southern Fukien) began coming about 1850. In the two northern provinces of Chiangmai and Chiangrai there are several thousands of Yunnanese, called Haw, and remnants of the former Nationalist army who came overland from southwestern China by way of Burma. The relative size of each speech group was given by Skinner in 1955 as shown in Table 5.

18 TABLE 5 *

Group Teochiu Hakka Hainanese Cantonese Hokkien Other Total

Size 1,297,000 370,000 278,000 162,000 162,000 46,000 2,315,000

% of Total

*

56 16 12- . 7 7 2 100

The largest number of Chinese ar.e found in the Bangkok area. In 1947 half of the residents of Bangkok were Chinese, but the proportion has decreased now because the flow of new immigrants from China has ceased since the Communists took control, and because many rural Thai have migrated to the city looking for work in the new industries. Out of the present? 3,000,000 people in the greater Bangkok-Thonburi area, prdba-, bly about one-fourth are Chinese. A second major concentration of Chinese i s on the Malay Peninsula in the southern section of the country. All of the five major dialect groups are to be found in its tin and rubber industries and in all the retail businesses. Chinese will be found scattered throughout the whole country in all the cities and market towns.

ECONOMIC ACTIVITIES The Chinese were welcomed to Thailand originally to meet the need of the government for middlemen to expedite Thai exports of rice, rubber, tin and teak, and to distribute foreign imported goods brought by Western merchants. Traditionally, the Thai have been either peasant farmers or government officials, and not interested in commercial activities. Chinese artisans and skilled workers were al so relied on for the development of Bangkok as the capital of the Chakri dynasty.

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This. occupational separation between the Chinese and the Thai has resulted in the opportunity for the Chinese to acquire great economic power. At the present time the division is not as sharp a s a century ago, but the Chinese still dominate wholesale and retail trade, banking and insurance; rice-milling and export, the tin and rubber industries, and the many new light industries established in the past two decades. Many Hainanese are found in the hotel and restaurant business. Many Hakka are tailors and leatherworkers. Cantonese are prominent in machine shops. %

A 1952 survey (Skinner 1957:301-304) of the working population of Bangkok showed the predominance of Chinese in the categories listed in Table 6.

TABLE 6

No. Workers Chinese Thai 1. Weavers and dyers 2. Shoemakers 3. Metal workers (base and precious) 4. Building trades 5. Hotel and Restaurant employees 6. Carpenters, furniture makers 7. Market sellers and hawkers 8. Barbers 9. Miscellaneous technicians 10. Business owners and managers Business clerks 11. 12. Tailors and dressmakers

8*770 1,960

97% 96

7,540 1,420

87 82

13 18

4,110

88

12

8,480

86

14

7,940 1,350

86 75.5

14 24.5

11,370

71.5

28.5

124,140 8,210 6,600

71 65.5 60

29 34.5 40

3% 4

20

The survey further showed .Thai and Chinese about equally ’ represented in the preparation and processing of foodstuffs and as market gardeners. The Thai were in the majority in highstatus occupations a s government officials and clerks, professional and semi-professionals, and administrative specialists; and in lower status jobs as hairdressers, taxi, bus, and truck drivers, domestic and service workers. The social values and prestige goals of theChinese in Thailand are not the same as those of the Thai. Compared to the Thai, the Chinese are materialistic and regard the acquisition of wealth a s an end in itself or a s a means to social position. Among the Chinese, social status i s defined largely in terms of wealth and business leadership.

SOCIAL ORGANIZATIONS Regional or Dialect Organizations The Chinese have developed a large variety of voluntary organizations to meet the felt needs of their society. The most prominent of these are the various regional and dialect associations. Those coming from Swatow and speaking Teochiu have formed the Teochiu Association, which i s subdivided into smaller groupings based on the different counties ofthe Swatow area. Other dialect associations include the Hakka Association, the Cantonese Association, the Hainan Association, the Hokkien Association, the Taiwan Association, and the Chiang-Che (Shanghai) Association. The activities of these groups are varied, and include the founding of Chinese schools, the establishing of Chinese hospitals and clinics, the maintenance of cemeteries, the relief of suffering caused by fires and floods, mutual aid and support for those in special need, and some recreational facilities for ping-pong, badminton, and basketball. Requirements for joining a regional association are not stringent, and include (1) being from that area of China or having parents from that area, (2) having two established members of the organization as sponsors, and (3) paying the

21 membership dues regularly. Very few women join these associations, although there are no regulations prohibiting their becoming members. Meetings of the full membership are usuallyheldonce every two years. A board of directors i s elected by secret ballot and given the responsibility of organizing and directing the activities of the association. The board of directors at their first meeting will elect the President, Vice-President, Secretary, Treasurer, other officers and committees a s needed. They will also engage the permanent staff which has the responsibility for doing- most of the work of the organization. (Chinese churches in Thailand also follow this pattern of organization, regardless of whether they are Baptist or Presbyterian in origin.) Chinese Chamber of Commerce The largest and most influential organization of Chinese in Thailand i s the Chinese Chamber of Commerce. Its main functions are to promote Chinese business interests and to be the spokesman for the Chinese community to the Thai government. Membership is open to respectable business firms, individuals on recommendation, and other community associations. Surname Associations Another type.of association very common among Chinese in Thailand i s the surname association. Membership in these may be classified according to three types: (1) those with the same surname from the same place in China; (2) those with the same surname, speaking the same dialect, but from different counties; and (3) those with the same surname,, but coming from different areas and speaking different dialects. These function primarily as small welfare organizations, specializing in burials and ancestral ceremonies. Some of these have built very ornate temples to serve as ancestral halls for people of their surname in Thailand. With the increasing use of Thai names by the second and third generations, the importance of these associations will decline.

22 Benevolent and Charitable Organizations Another kind of organization which receives strong support from the Chinese community i s the benevolent association. The largest of these i s the Pao-Teh Shan Tang (Repay Virtue Benevolent Association), whose annual budget i s about $75,000. The most important activities of this association include emergency relief for victims of fires, floods, and other disasters, the operation of the Overseas Chinese Hospital, and funeral assistance for indigent Chinese in its own cemetery. The Chinese do not expect that the Thai government will provide welfare assistance for poor Chinese, and they have formed benevolent associations for this purpose themselves. Charity and philanthropy are not well developed among the Thai. Giving to monks and Buddhist temples i s an accepted practice, for it brings merit for the donor, but no particular value i s attached to community charity or welfare programs (Coughlin 1960:60). Every year there are a number of fires in Bangkok which may burn out a number of families who live in “row-houses.” Before the firemen have extinguished the fire, the Pao-Teh Shan Tang people are there with food, money, clothing, and blankets to aid the victims of the fire. Because of this prompt emergency relief, this association has a good reputation and receives many unsolicited contributions from Chinese businessmen. In addition to the Overseas Chinese Hospital, the Chinese community has established the T’ien-Hwa Hospital, which provides both Chinese and Western medical treatment 'on a charity basis. Contributions from the community have also provided the Hsieh-ho Sanitarium for tuberculosis patients and the Chung-Hwa Clinic for Chihese-medicine outpatient service.’ Contributions from individuals or business firms for these charitable organizations are usually recognized by mention in the Chinese newspapers. Making large gifts for community

23

charity and relief i s regarded a s a way of gaining prestige in the Chinese community. Others In addition to the above-mentioned community organizations, there are still many smaller formal and informal associations, including trade guilds, business associations, religious societies, social clubs, and mutual aid funeral societies.-

RELIGIOUS LIFE Most Chinese consciously retain the beliefs and practices of the popular religious tradition in China, namely, Confucian social ethics, veneration of ancestors, Mahayana Buddhist doctrines, and Taoist super-naturalism. Some have adopted the Theravada Buddhist beliefs of the, Thai, and many participate in the activities of the local temple. But to the Chinese community as a whole, neither organized,religion nor theological speculation has a strong appeal. Generally a pragmatic attitude is held, and religious practices are important for appeasing the spirits, insuring good luck, health, and prosperity, and gaining help from the gods in times of sickness and adversity. In 1950 there were seventeen Chinese monastery-temples with 55 Chinese monks in Thailand. Fifteen of the monasteries and 51 of the. monks were in Bangkok. Virtually all. Chinese monks were recruited directly from China, with almost no over-seas Chinese entering the monastic order. Chinese monks do not go about the streets early in the morning to get food from people as the Thai monks do. Instead, they receive their food .from the temples to which they are attached. They are celibate, and remain in the monkhood for life. Their chief functions relate to divination, fortunetelling, exorcism of evil spirits, and funeral services. Another religious practitioner found in many Chinese temples, especially in south Thailand, i s the tang-ki (shaman

24 or spirit-medium). When he i s in a trance, he is possessed by the shen (spirit) of some dead person, and able to exorcise kui (demons, ghosts), divine the causes of illness and misfortunes, and suggest cures. They are also consulted often for winning lottery numbers and gambling advice. Among overseas .Chinese in Thailand, a s in Singapore and Malaysia, the strongest surviving religious idea from China is that the fortunes of men are largely controlled by the working of shen (gods, spirits) and by a right propitiation of the more powerful among them. There are many kui (demons, ghosts) at work in the world causing disaster and misfortune. The only powers that can deal with these kui (demons) effectively are the shen (gods, spirits) (Elliott 1955:29). This belief goes back to the Chinese idea of the two forces of yin and yang in the world. Yang i s the positive principle, the masculine principle, the principle of light. Yin i s the negative principle, the feminine principle, the principle of darkness. Within each human personality, both principles are at work. When a person dies, the yin force, called p’o ( ) becomes a kui (■ demon, ghost), that hovers around the grave of the corpse or in the places where the person was accustomed to be when alive. The yang force, called ch’i ( It, ) becomes a shen ( god, spirit) in the world of shades or spirit world. After a certain period of suffering, and with the aid of the ritual sacrifices of the living, this shen may escape suffering in the world of shades and be promoted to a “Western heaven” of bliss and light. These which it shen will tion's that

beliefs provide the basis for ancestor worship, by is hoped that the kui will not cause trouble and the help to give good fortune. Stewart lists six supposiare connected with ancestor worship: b

1. That after death the soul still lives on.' 2. That these dead are dependent upon the living for all their needs, such a s food, clothing, shelter, face,

25 funds, honor, prosperity, protection, etc., which they enjoyed on-earth. 3. That all these things can be transferred to them in some way, usually by burning paper imitations, but oftentimes by means many more times expensive and exacting. 4. That these dwellers in the shadow world can return good or evil to their posterity, and constantly do so, according to the treatment accorded them. 5. That the dead who are neglected by their descendants, together with those who are without posterity, are beggar spirits in the world of darkness, and are forced to eke out a wretched existence. 6. That many of the ills that flesh is heir to, such as sickness, business disaster, calamity, and death, are inflicted by these “orphan” spirits, who in attempting to avenge themselves, prey upon those in this world who are in any way responsible for their forlorn condition (1926:85).

In a study of a Teochiu village of north Malaysia, it was observed that the Teochius spent a lot of effort in trying to find out how to influence the gods (whoever they were), and in receiving necessary advice from them. Some of the differing views found were: 1. Some hold that the gods only reward the virtuous, those who live a good life. 2 Others believe it i s only a matter of chance. 3. Others hold that it i s only a matter of the sincere performance of family ceremonials, chief of which i s the burying of one’s parents piously.

26 4. All believe to a greater or lesser extent in the right atmosphere being created (Newell 1962:113). In regard to their philosophy of salvation, Thai and Chinese have different ideas. The Thai have strong beliefs in reincarnation, and believe that the merit gained by feeding the Buddhist monks and by contributing to the building and maintenance of the temples will redound to one’s credit in a future life on earth. The Chinese believe that they will attain good fortune in this life and paradise after death by the intercession of the gods, and they make their offerings to these gods rather than to human beings on earth (Coughlin 1953:420). In struggling with the question of whether or not to believe in supernatural powers, the general feeling of the Chinese is, “It i s considered unwise not to believe.” Doubts of the people are not about the existence ofthe gods, but over the the methods of gaining the gods’ assistance (Newell 1962:115). Both Thai and Chinese retain many of the animistic beliefs and practices they had before Buddhism became their formal .religion. These are chiefly concerned with supernatural spirits in natural objects, such as the ground, trees, rocks, ant-hills, ,etc. Rituals and sacrifices must be made when breaking ground for the construction of a new building to apologize to and appease the disturbed spirits. Most Thai homes will have a "spirit, house” placed in the corner of the property, and offerings are made to keep the spirits of the ground contented.

HOUSEHOLD RELIGIOUS ACTIVITIES Nearly every Chinese house has a household shrine where various spirits are worshipped. Ordinarily these include a God of the Earth, a God of the House, a God of the Kitchen, a God of the Sky, and in case of merchants, a God of Wealth. There i s also an ancestor shelf, but not ancestor tablets, located prominently in the home for the veneration of ancestors.

27 Worship practices vary, and include the burning of incense, burning of candles, bowing, and presenting of food and drink offerings. In most families, it i s the responsibility of the., wife to cafry out these rituals. Theyare usually performed on the first- and fifteenth day of each lunar month, and on special Chinese festivals such as New Year, Ch’ing-Ming (April), Chungyuan (seventh lunar month), Mid-Autumn (eighth lunar month), and the Winter Festival (eleventh month). Traditional Chinese festivals are declining in importance in Thailand, except for Chinese New Year, which i s the first, day of .the lunar calendar. .Every family makes extensive preparation for this festival, giving the house a thorough cleaning, replacing all the old god papers with new ones, preparing special foods, providing new. clothes for all the family, paying up old debts, and preparing packets of money for distribution to children. Shops are closed for 3-5 days, and the opportunity is taken to visit friends and. relatives to go to the movies, to go on outings at the beach, or just take a rest from the busy activities of the year. Many of the 'happiest memories of Chinese childhood are connected with New Year festivities.

HOME AND FAMILY LIFE The Confucian ethical teachings with strong emphasis on the home and the relationships of people within the family have given a distinguishing characteristic to Chinese family life wherever Chinese have gone in their dispersion. “Morals stem from the family, not from the gods” (Newell 1962:117). Respect of children for their elders, cooperation between brothers and sisters, and the unity of the family have stood up remarkably well in spite of the disintegrating influences of industrialization and Western individualistic education. Because of tfie transition of overseas Chinese from rural life in China to urban life in other countries, the extended family ideal (five generations under one roo0 has been modified and the nuclear family style of living i s now the rule.

28 Differences between Thai families and Chinese families are noticeable. The Chinese regard the family as the very keystone of society, and see it extending back into time for innumerable generations. The Thai have little sense of lineage, no feeling for ancestry, and little interest in or knowledge of kin beyond immediate living relatives (Coughlin 1960:78). One of the foremost characteristics of Chinese family life i s that it i s patriarchal. The husband i s definitely the head of the family in most homes. He i s the representative of the family in kinship groupings and in general society. He i s the one who participates in community organizations and social activities. The wife usually remains in the home and her principal purpose in life i s marriage and the raising of a family. She often helps in the family business in addition to her household duties. She does the daily marketing for food, and attends to the family religious rituals. Children are taught filial piety and respect for one’s elders. They are expected to submit to their parents’ wishes in the matters of their education, vocation, and marriage. Parents work hard to provide the best education possible for their children and put pressure on them to excel in their studies. Children are expected to be grateful to their parents for this sacrifice, and also expected to care for their parents in their old age, providing them with both physical and emotional security. The typical Chinese store-front house in Thailand i s a two or three- storey “row -house” built of wood or bricks and concrete. The front door, usually a folding door the width of the house, opens right onto the side-walk. The downstairs i s used for business. Kitchen and bathroom facilities are in the back. Bedrooms are on the second and third floors. This combining of business and residence in the same building makes it easy for the wife and children to assist in business activities, waiting on customers, wrapping packages, running errands, etc. By this constant exposure to business trans-

29 actions, Chinese children grow iip learning to be businessmen ' . almost by nature.

biDipox.

ToiUi

MOUND

FLOOR.

i

FIRST FLOOR.

IMPORTANT FAMILY CEREMONIES “Chinese say explicitly that marriage and death are the two major ritual points in the cycle of individual life” (Freedman 1957:189). Two other less important occasions in some families are the first-month celebration for a baby and the sixty-first birthday of the father and mother. Marriage The arrangement of marriage by parents is generally accepted among the Chinese in Thailand, but the parents usually

30

ask the son o r daughter’s acquiescence before concluding the arrangements. In cases where young people themselves have carried on a courtship, the final engagement and marriage arrangements are made by the parents of the two families involved. Wedding expenses include a dowry to the bride’s family, numerous gifts, and usually a feast or reception. These are usually borne by the groom’s family. Weddings constitute a major event in the life of a Chinese family and become the occasion for strengthening family and kin solidarity, for raising the family’s prestige in society, for enhancing the family’s business connections, and for repaying social obligations. The newly-married couple usually live with the groom’s family, at least for a few years. The daughter-in-law is expected to give special service to her husband’s parents and to perform many of the menial tasks of the household. Her situation improves greatly with the birth of her first baby, and especially so if it is a boy. Divorce is very uncommon in Chinese society.

Funerals Among overseas Chinese funeral customs show less change from China than marriage customs do. As noted in religious beliefs above, the living and the dead are interdependent and can affect each other’s welfare. This makes it mandatory f o r a proper funeral to be held for one’s parents o r grandparents. The funeral services may last from three to seven days, and are held either at the home o r at a Buddhist temple where there are facilities for such ceremonies. Not all temples have the facilities. The first requirement of a Chinese funeral is a crowd, a large body of people to follow the hearse. Practically all of the regional and surname associations have their own cemeteries and operate mutual aid “death benefits" of some sort. Assistance given to the bereaved family includes:

31

(1) Payment of a sum of .money from the organization to help the family cover funeral expenses. (2) Visits by association members to the dead person’s house to pay their respects and make individual cash gifts to the family. (3) Participation by the association members in the funeral ceremonies. The bereaved family will issue funeral notices to relatives, neighbors, friends, and business associates. The ceremonies are held in the evenings and are followed by refreshments. The burial service usually takes place in the forenoon or early afternoon of the last day of the ceremonies. The bereaved family provides lunch for all who attend the burial ceremony. The Thai disposal of the corpse is by cremation at the Buddhist temple, but the Chinese almost universally insist on burial. There is a tendency among the wealthy overseas Chinese to spend large sums of money for very ornate tombs. In the traditional Chinese funeral ceremony, replicas of houses, furniture, paper money, clothing etc., are burned to provide the dead with these things to use in the nether world. There are women mediums in every Chinese community who profess to be able to contact the spirits of the dead, and they are consulted by the bereaved family to see if the departed ghost is content with the things sent him.

32

CHINESE BAPTIST CHURCHES The first Protestant missionaries to reach Siam were the Rev. Carl Augustus Friedrich Gutzlaff, M.D., a German, at first sent out by the Netherlands Missionary Society, but later working on his own, and the Rev. Jacob Tomlin, an Englishman, of the London Missionary Society. They arrived in Bangkok on August 28, 1828. Dr. Gutzlaff left for ‘China in 1831, and Mr. Tomlin left in January 1832. Their only convert to Christ during these three years was a Chinese, named Boon Tee. In 1832 Boon Tee assisted the first Congregational missionary to Thailand, the Rev. David Abeel, M.D., and in 1833 also helped the first American Baptist missionary, the Rev. John Taylor Jones. In 1836 Boon Tee fell victim to opium and gave up his Christian profession (Wells 1958:7). The first American missionary to work in Siam was the Rev. David Abeel, who reached Bangkok in 1831. He was sentout by the American Board of Commissioners forForeignMissions (ABCFM). Assisted by Boon Tee, he conducted services on Sundays for small groups of Chinese. In 1834 two more ABCFM families .arrived, the Rev. and Mrs. Charles Robinson and the Rev. and Mrs. Stephen Johnson. Mr. Robinson worked among the Thai and Mr. Johnson among the Hokkien Chinese.

33

In 1838 Mr. Johnson baptizeda very capable Chinese teacher, Qua Ki-Eng. He was a Hokkien from Amoy and had married a Cambodian wife (Wells 1958:9). He was the grandfather of the Rev. Boon Tuan Boon Itt, who was educated in the United States by Dr. Samuel House, a Presbyterian missionary. He graduated from Williams College and Auburn Theological Seminary, and was ordained in 1892. He acquired U.S. citizenship the same year, and returned to Siam in 1893, where he had ten years of service for Christ before he died of cholera in 1903. Mr. Johnson was transferred to China in 1846, and in 1849 the work of the ABCFM was discontinued. Their eighteen years of work had resulted in the conversion of one Chinese and not a single Thai. In 1829 Dr. Gutzlaff sent a letter to the churches in America urging them to send missionaries to Siam. As a result, the American Baptist Mission transferred the Rev. and Mrs. John Taylor Jones from Moulmein in Burma in 1833. He found the Chinese more responsive to the Gospel than the Thai, and in December 1833, he baptized four Chinese. Two of them had been instructed in the faith along with Boon Tee by Dr. Gutzlaff and Dr. Abeel. In 1835 the Rev. William Dean, American Baptist Mission, arrived in Bangkok and took up the study of the Teochiu language. In 1837 he organized the first Asian Protestant Church in the Far East with eleven members, eight Westerners and three Chinese. Soon three more Chinese were converted. In 1840 the church had nine Chinese members, and in 1841 seven more Chinese were added. After the signing of the Anglo-Chinese treaty concluding the “Opium War” in 1842, the Rev. and Mrs. Dean moved to Hongkong. In 1843 they organized the first Chinese church in Hongkong with two Teochiu believers from Bangkok and the first two Chinese Christians to be baptized in Hongkong. These two Teochiu, Chek Sun and Chek Ee, were the first Christians to preach the Gospel in Swatow. For this they were beaten and imprisoned (Hervey 1892:468).

34

The American Baptist Mission began work inSwatowin 1861 and this work developed into the strongest Baptist mission in China. By 1897 the Baptist churches in that area had 1,037 members, and by 1950 they had 9709. Dr. William Dean moved back to Bangkok from China in 1864 and spent another twenty years evangelizing the Chinese. The 1883 statistics for Baptist Chinese work in Siam report five churches and six chapels, with a total of 500 members. However in 1884, the year Dean returned to America, the report shows only 100 members. The decline i s attributed to the power of mobocracy in Bangkok and the return of the Chinese to Hongkong and China. The Baptist Mission did not assign any more missionaries to Thailand until 1952.

THE MAITRICHIT CHURCH AND THE TWELFTH DISTRICT The Swatow Baptist Church started by Dean declined to 13 members in the years 1889-1895. Then there was an upswing in membership until it reached 138 in 1907. This was largely due to the migration of Christians from Baptist churches in the Swatow area. In 1935 the congregation built a large three story church building, with an auditorium that will seat 400. Dr. John Sung, famedChinese evangelist, visited there during the years 1937-39 and held two series of revival meetings. He was a charismatic preacher of great spiritual power, and attendance at his meetings reached 1500 in the closing days. Healings were reported after his prayers for the sick, and many were converted to Christ, weeping as they confessed their sins. Rev. Graham Fuller, a Presbyterian missionary in Bangkok, told the writer that he experienced the new birth himself during Dr. Sung’s meetings. Members of the three Chinese churches in Bangkok at that time organized witness teams and sought opportunities to preach Christ in homes and on the streets. Spiritual renewal resulting from Dr. Sung’s ministry strengthened the Chinese Christians for the years of suffering under Japanese domination 1941-45.

35

Since the end of World War II, this Swatow Baptist Church, now called the Maitrichit Chinese Baptist Church, has grown steadily from 178 members in 1948 to 750 members in 1974. This church operates a primary school with more than 1200 students in downtown Bangkok and a secondary boarding school with 150 students at Bangsaen Beach, 70 miles southeast of Bangkok. The members of the Maitrichit Church, with the cooperation of the American Baptist missionaries who were transferred to Thailand after the takeover of China by the Communists, have established several new churches both in Bangkok and in some rural areas. These are now grouped together in the Twelfth District of the Church of Christ in Thailand. TABLE 7

Chinese Baptist Churches, Twelfth District CCT

Church 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9.

Year of Founding

Maitrichit, Bangkok Hua Kun Chae Bethel, Bangkok Mahachai Yala Ruamchit, Bangkok Community, Bangkok Sacred Light, Thonburi Lak Tao, Bangkok

1837 1953 1956 1956 1961 1963 1966 1967 1968

Language

1972 Members

Teochiu 739 Teochiu 44 24 Teochiu Teochiu 14 Teochiu, Thai 29 Hakka 41 Thai 32 Teochiu 50 Teochiu 25 Total

998

The Rev. Lim Pue Ngi, pastor pf the Maitrichit Church from 1948 to 1960, opened the Bethel Bible School in 1958 to train pastors and evangelists for work among Chinese. This school has received some subsidy from Dr. Andrew Gih and the Evangelize China Fellowship. Several graduates are now pastors of

36 churches and several more are doing pioneer evangelism among the former Nationalist army remnants still living in Chiangrai province in the far north of Thailand. Bethel Bible School enrolled nine students in 1974, with Thai now being the main language of instruction.

37

MAP 2

* >Lampang ■Nangkoi NgiJ ■Dponom

Idorr Taki

jSukhotnQj ipdsanulok

Bangkok Maitrichit Bethel Ruamchit Community Sacred Light Lak Tao

iKhon Kftcn ,Roi - a a faakornsowon Ubot 'Nakornrajsima

2

Mahachai

4

Yala

BANGKOK .cnburi

S

3

-------- —

G U L F "O/ --T H A I L A N D ------

N a no m sn t ha m a r a t

)«ta

Location of Chinese Churches in Twelfth District, Church of Christ in Thailand

Hua Kun Chae

38

5

PRESBYTERIAN CHINESE CHURCHES American Presbyterian work in Siam began in 1840 and has continued until the present time. Because the Baptists had already started a church among the Chinese in Bangkok, the Presbyterians decided to concentrate on work among the Thai. About 1850, when the King of Siam was urged to take action against the missionaries, he replied, “Let them alone; no one will give heed to them except the Chinese” (Feltus 1924:77;. The Presbyterians worked for nineteen years before they saw their first ethnic Thai convert. He was Nai Chune, baptized in 1859. The following year the first Siamese woman Christian, Esther Pradipasena, was baptized at the age of sixteen. She died in 1929 at the age of 85, survived by over a hundred grandchildren and great-grandchildren. The Rev. and Mrs. Stephen Mattoon arrived in 1847 and started a day school in Bangkok in 1852. In 1853 it was changed into a boarding school, with instruction in Chinese for the 27 students who attended. Qua Ki-Eng was made head teacher, and did remarkable work until his death in 1859. His successor was Thai, and so the medium of instruction was changed from Chinese to Thai. This school, but with a different name, was the beginning of the present Bangkok Christian College (Wells 1958:25).

39

The first ordained minister in the .Siamese church' -was a Chinese from Hainan- Island/ Oban. Si Teng; 'who'-went to-;Thailand in .1845. He- was-baptized in Bangkok in-1851- at the age- of 24, and ordained to the ministry4ncr872. H& was 'able .to preach in both Thai and Chinese (Feltus 1924:98). Another Hairianese,. Nai Tien.Hee, was baptized in 1866. He obtained a degreednmedicine'at New York University in 1871, returned to Siam, and in 1880 became.superintendent of a sixtybed army hospital, the first government hospital to be run on modern lines. He became quite wealthy and gave land on Silom Road for a Christian cemetery. He also contributed a large sum for the construction of Subsampantawongs- (Fourth) Church, named for his eldest son. Another son, Nai Pote Sarasin,-became premier of Thailand in 1957 (Wells 1958:41). ■From these and other accounts it i s evident that the.Presbyterian Mission had more success in converting Chinese than Thai in its beginning. stages, even though their work was done in the Thai language and not the Chinese language. «

*

**

51

In 1873, at the same time that Rev. William Dean was having some success in his Chinese church work, a Presbyterian "missionary, J.N. Culbertson, requested permission from Board headquarters to study Chinese so that he could work among these more responsive people in their own language. But New York refused to grant permission, saying, “We prefer you to be a good Siamese preacher”; (Presbyterian. Foreign Board Microfilm, Vol. 49, Reel 229). Culbertson criticized the m i s sionary operations on two points: (1) less time, should be spent in teaching English to the Siamese- -and (2). the missionary tries ,to do all the work himself, not trusting the native Christians who sit idly by-observing-lhe foreigners. In 1896 the first Chinese church associated with the Presbyterian mission was organized with, five Christians who .had migrated from Swatow, China, and two- Chinese converted in Thailand. These immigrant Christians were' members of the churches founded by the English Presbyterian Mission which began work in Swatow,and Chaochou (Teochiu) in 1860. By 1900 they had a church .of 2,750 members, and by 1950 there were 11,000 members. Many of the Teochiu and Hakka Christian

40 families now in Thailand trace their conversion to the work of the English Presbyterians. These families did not want to join the Baptist church, and urged the Presbyterian missionaries to start a Chinese church for them. Store-front facilities were rented for a meeting place, and Nai Koo Choi was engaged as a preacher. By 1913 the group had grown to 147 members and conducted services in both the Teochiu and Cantonese languages (Kraege 1963:5). In 1915 the Rev. and Mrs. Graham Fuller arrived in Bangkok with the assignment of learning Teochiu in order to work among the Chinese population. This was 74 years after the first Presbyterian missionary in Thailand, the Rev. W. P. Buell, had written to the Board in New York: If the salvation of the souls of the Chinese i s a desirable object, no country furnishes, greater facilities, and in no other, it i s believed, has the number of conversions to Christianity been so great, compared with the labor bestowed... The Chinese in Bangkok alone are in perishing need of the labors of many more missionaries and we would cordially welcome any member your society could send here (Presbyterian Foreign Board Microfilm, Vol. 1, Reel 181). In 1919 a second Presbyterian couple, the Rev. and Mrs. Albert Seigle, arrived to work among the Cantonese -speaking Chinese. Out of a total of 91 Presbyterian missionaries in Thailand at that time, only these four were engaged in Chinese evangelism. Actually, they were unable to devote their full time to evangelism, as they were pressured into teaching English in the mission schools even before they had much proficiency in either the Chinese or Thai languages (Kraege 1963: 5, 9). The two language groups, Teochiu and Cantonese, continued to use the same rented facilities at Ngee Hock Lane until 1923. In that year the Cantonese -speaking group moved to the YMCA on Vorachak Road for their meetings. From 1927 to 1932 they were in their own rented store-front buildings, and in 1932 moved to their present location on Sathorn Road, and took the name, the Sathorn Christian Church.

41 The Teochiu group continued in the rented quarters on Ngee Hock Lane until 1933, when they purchased land on Rama IV Road, remodelled a house to serve as sanctuary and school, and took the name, Sapan Luang (Yellow Bridge) Chinese Church. Funds for the purchase of property for the Sathorn Church and the Sapan Luang Church did not come from the Presbyterian Mission. In 1918 Chinese businessmen came to the Rev. Graham Fuller and the Rev. R. O. Franklin, principal of the Bangkok Christian College, asking that a mission school be opened for Chinese boys. They were prepared to raise Tcs. 40,000 for the required property. Land adjacent to the Bangkok Christian College was purchased, a contract drawn up between the Chinese Board of Directors and the Presbyterian Mission, and the Chinese school opened as a department of Bangkok Christian College; Because of the difficulty of engaging Chinese teachers who could meet Thai government qualifications, the school was closed in 1924. The Mission offered to return the original sum of Tcs. 40,000 to the donors, but the donors expressed the wish that the money be used instead for the good of the Chinese people in Bangkok. It should be noted that these businessmen were not Christians, but desired the assistance of Americans in opening a school to teach Chinese. In 1932 it was decided to divide these funds equally between the two Presbyterian Chinese congregations, to enable them both to acquire greatly needed > property. Later both churches developed Christian day schools with instruction in both Thai and Chinese, and thus have carried out the intention of the original Chinese donors (Kraege 1963:5).

THE SAPAN LUANG CHURCH The initiative for the founding and development of this church came from members of the English Presbyterian churches in China who migrated to Thailand from 1895 to 1940. Until 1960 all of the pastors ofthe church al so came from the same church, known in Chinese as the Ling-nam Synod ofthe Church of Christ in China. The American missionary advisors to the Sapan Luang Church were the Rev. and Mrs. Graham Fuller, 1915-1951;

42

the Rev. and Mrs. Clifford Chaffee, 1951-1963; and the Rev. and Mrs. Carl Blanford, 1963-1974. The increase in membership of the church has been steady, but not spectacular. The membership figures a s reported to the Seventh District, Church of Christ in Thailand, are given in Table 8. TABLE 8

Sapan Luang Chinese Church Membership Figures Year Members Members Year 842 1963 100 1925 1964 858 1932 170 864 1965 1941 235 882 1966 374 1948 903 1964 491 1951 944 1968 569 1953 950 1969 593 1954 976 1970 691 1957 1027 1971 729 1960 1080 1972 738 1961 1147 1973 781 1962 In the twenty- five year period from 1948 to 1973, the average annual growth rate has been 4.6%. Analysis of the additions to the church in this period shows that a total of 1098 adult members joined the church. 54.3% of these (596) were adult baptisms (conversion growth); 28.6% (314) were confirmations (biological growth); and 17.1% (188) were transfer from other churches (see Appendix C for detailed yearly statistics). Chinese Christians, in common with the whole Chinese community in Thailand, have a great concern for the education of their children in the Chinese language. For this purpose, the Sapan Luang Church founded the Chiao Kwang school in 1935, with 83 pupils and 7 teachers in the first year. The school was closed during the Japanese war years, but reopened in 1946. Following the war, the church found their buildings inadequte to handle the increased attendance at both the church and the school. So a new sanctuary able to seat 1000 and new c l a s s rooms with a capacity of 1125 students were completed in 1954.

................................

7

i ' \

1

__ ‘ ■ I- ■ i * A l p r o t l e r churches of t h e d i s t r i c t

11

T HdVHS

' 'poos

BJtpquiSH

800

1

-------

Total Membership Seventh D i s t r i c t

1971 1970 1969

1968 1967 1966 1965 1964 1963 1962

1961 1960

1959 1953 1957 1956 1955 ‘1954 11953 1952 1951

11950 11949 il948

’8

Graph Showing Membership of t h e Sapan Luang Church i n Comparison w i t h rest o f seventh D i s t r i c t c h u r c h e s

OOOZj

sjsaw w

1600

43

[1974 1973 1972

44 The total construction cost came to $150,000, of which $40,000 was given by the Presbyterian Mission. The rest was contributed by the members of the church. Enrollment at Chiao Kwang school increased rapidly a s the figures in Table 9 show. In 1958, additional classrooms and church staff living quarters were constructed at a cost of $50,000, half of which was provided by the United Presbyterian Mission. In 1972 a threestory addition was made on the front side of the church property, increasing facilities for both the church and school programs. This building cost $80,000 and was financed by the members of the church in Bangkok. About 20% of the students enrolling in the school are from Christian families. The rest consider themselves Buddhists. A half hour of instruction in the Christian faith is given daily, with all students required to attend. The officers and members of the church regard this a s the best evangelistic opportunity the church has. This i s a private school where parents send their children by their own choice. The attraction of the school is that it offers ten hours a week in Chinese, as well as twenty hours a week in Thai, from kindergarten through the fourth grade. Income from tuition and fees i s adequate to pay all the expenses of the school. TABLE 9 Enrollment at Chiao Kwang Primary School Year Students Year Students 1953 393 1964 1329 1954 335 1965 1328 1955 582 1966 1378 1956 553 1527 1967 1957 867 1968 1562 1958 1170 1969 1619 1959 1415 1969 1619 1970 1659 1415 1959 1703 1408 1971 1960 1766 1972 1961 1454 1774 1973 1962 1528 1780 1423 1974 1963

45

In 1961 the church bought nine rai (about 3.5 acres) of land on Klong Tan Road on the edge of Bangkok seven miles from, the church location. In 1967 they opened a secondary school on this property, with a total investment of $250,000, 90% of which was raised in Thailand. This . school has grades five through ten. Instruction is all in Thai, with English taught as a foreign language. Table 10 shows the enrollment figures for the Thai Christian School (Chiao Kwang Middle School).’ One of the problems of both these schools i s the difficulty of securing qualified teachers whoare Christian. In the Primary School about half of the 80 teachers are members of a church, and in the Secondary School less than 20% are Christian. The young people from church families do not show much interest in the teaching profession, probably because of the low pay. Salary scales in the church schools are above the levels set by the government for teachers in government schools, but they are still low in comparison to what most Chinese can earn in business. The lack of Christian teachers hinders the Christian education program of both schools.

TABLE 10

Enrollment at Chiao Kwang Middle School Year

Students

1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974

83 167 230 i 280 325 397 409 350

The evangelistic opportunity provided the church by these schools i s the relationship that can be established with the

46

families of the students. As the teachers of the school and the pastoral staff of the church, along with the elders arid deacons of the church who are on the school board, cooperate with the homes in the education of their children, it is possible to approach the parents and ask them to consider becoming Christians. Parents are appreciative of the efforts made by the church to help their children, and welcome visits by the teachers and officers of the church.

Another aspect of the day school to be considered i s its relation to the church’s program of Christian education for the children from church families. Parents rely so much on the school to teach the Bible to their children that they often neglect parental responsibility for family worship and instruction. The church also has failed to develop an effective Sunday School program or other method of Christian instruction. This i s disastrous for those children who must attend non-Christian schools where Buddhist indoctrination takes place.

A very noticeable trend among the young people of the church since 1970 is their increasing use of the Thai language both in individual contacts and in their group meetings, with a corresponding decrease in the use of Chinese. The session of the church was aware of this, and beginning in July 1972 made arrangements for a Thai-language worship service to be held in addition to the traditional Chinese services. Response on the part of the young people was very positive, and approximately 200 are attending this worship service weekly. It should be noted that attendance at the Chinese worship service held at the same hour has not decreased appreciably. The average weekly attendance is between 350 and 400 at the Chinese service. In 1973 half of the adult baptisms at the Sapan Luang Church were new converts from the workers of a metal factory owned by one of the deacons of the church. Beginning at Christmas 1972, he. invited the pastor and young people to hold weekly , meetings at the factory. By March 1974, 44 of the 100 workers

47

at the factory had been baptized. Then the owner built a church building and pastor’s residence on his land near the factory, and proceeded to provide nurture for the new Christians as well as to continue to evangelize the remaining workers. In December 1974 steps were being taken to organize them into a new church. It should be noted that the owner i s Chinese and most of the workers are Thai, and is a case where there has been an effective cross-cultural communication of the Christian faith.

THE SATHQRN CHRISTIAN CHURCH The Sathorn Church considers the arrival of the Rev. and Mrs. Albert Seigle in 1919 as their beginning as a church, even though services were held in Cantonese previous to that time. The nucleus for the starting of this church were Chinese Christians from Canton and Hongkong. When the Cantonesespeaking group separated from the Teochiu- speaking group in 1923, attendance was 70-80 at the Sunday services. Mr. Seigle was an ardent evangelist, and led groups of people from the church in home visitation and open-air preaching in the Chinese sections of Bangkok. Mr. Seigle felt that it was necessary to have a Chinese pastor in order to do an adequate job of nurturing the believers and of winning the non-Christians. So, beginning in 1922, he engaged Cantonese preachers from Canton and Hongkong to assist in this work. Up until 1956, all of the pastors were Chinabom and China-educated. One of them, the Rev. Lau Tin Wah, was led to Christ by Mr. Seigle and then sent to China for theological training. He returned in 1932 and served the church very effectively until 1940. His mother, who opposed his conversion to Christianity when he was a schoolboy in the mission school and who opposed his studying for the ministry, was baptized in December 1935. A new sanctuary seating 250 was constructed in 1935. It was remodelled in 1969, at a cost of $20,000, which was raised entirely in Thailand.

400

Members — 1800

48

1974 1973 1972 1971 197 O' 1969 1968 1967

1965 1964 1963 1962 1961 1960 1959 1958 1957 1956 1955 1954 1953 1952 1951

1949 1948 400

Members 000 j _ ---r

rH f ;

1950

Graph o f Sathorn Church Membership 1948-1973

•1966

48 The membership of the church' has gone up and down, showing the influence of both a mobile, migrant population, and a split in the church. Since 1961, the membership has remained about the 300 level. The Rev. Hsu Sung Kwang, who was pastor of the church from 1951-53, got into a misunderstanding with Mr. Seigle and some of the officers of the church, and pulled out 90 members to form an independent church, named Zion Christian Church. This church later became a member of the Sixth District of the Church of Christ in Thailand, and now has about 60 members. If the average annual growth rate is figured for the 25 years from 1948 to 1973, it i s 1.5% per year. However, if figured from 1960, the year that the Seigles retired and returned to the United States, the average annual growth rate i s only 0.7%. The Presbyterian Mission sent an American-born Chinese, the Rev. Ed Sue, to work there from 1961-63. He was followed by another American -Chinese, the Rev. Vincent Mok, from 1963-72. TABLE 11 Year 1913 1930 1932 1941 1948 1951 1953 1954 1957 1960 1961 1962

Members 107 104 117 146 155 260 192 220 274 280 300 317

Year 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973

Members •314 302 316 322 317 320 324 328 320 318 326

The church has an active youth program, but quite a number of the best young people after seeking education abroad, fail to return to Thailand.

50 In the spring of 1919 a Chinese school for girls, the Loyal School, was opened on the ground floor of the Fuller residence. Mrs. Hoh Seung was the Chinese principal from 1919 to 1926. Mrs. Fuller, Mrs. Seigle, and Miss Alice H. Schaefer were Presbyterian missionaries helping the school. It was closed from 1926 to 1929 because of anti-foreign demonstrations.

When Loyal School was reopened in 1929, it faced further difficulties in the form of restrictions on the number of hours that could be taught in Chinese. Miss Schaefer was principal until 1932, and Mrs. Seigle was principal from 1932 until 1941, when the school was closed because of Japanese occupation. Itwas reopened again in 1946 a s a s co- educational school and changed its name to the Loyal Primary School. It i s completely under the control of the session of the church, and presently enrolls about 400 students in grades one through four.

In 1955 Loyal Middle School was started by the church and now has 280 students in grades five to ten. Daily Bible teaching i s given in both schools. The Sathorn Church has raised a scholarship fund of 530,000 and uses the interest from this fund to support worthy students from poor homes.

The American Presbyterian Mission provided $25,000 from its Restoration Fund'. in 1946 to replace the main classroom building which had been hit by an incendiary bomb during the Japanese War. However, with the approval of the Mission, the church used the money to buy additional land on Sathorn Road. In 1950 a new classroom building was finished, costing Tcs. 285,000, of which Tcs. 80,000 ($4,000) was provided by the Presbyterian Mission. When the Loyal Middle School was started, the Mission gave $25,000 for a classroom building. In 1962, the Loyal Primary School had to erect a new building because the municipality took some land from the school to widen Sathorn Road. The total cost was $65,000, of which $10,000 was given by the Presbyterian Mission..

51

SEVENTH DISTRICT (CHINESE) CHURCH OF CHRIST IN THAILAND

■

Until 1932, all of the churches founded by Presbyterian missionaries were organized into the North Siam and South Siam Presbyteries of the Synod bf New York. After numerous consultations, the Church of Christ in Thailand was organized in 1934, and included churches founded by the British Churches of"Christ and- the American Baptist Mission, in addition to the Presbyterian churches. At the time of organization, the whole church was divided into seven' geographical and linguistic districts (presbyteries) called phak in Thai. Phaks One to Five were in northern Thailand and composed of northern Thai who spoke Lao. Phak Six included Thai -speaking congregations in Bangkok and Phitsanuloke. Phak Seven was to include all the Chinese congregations throughout the whole country. There was strong opposition to the idea of a Chinese District on the part of many missionaries and Thai church leaders, but the Chinese felt strongly that they had a necessity of being together as. a homogeneous unit in order to avoid being swallowed up by- the majority group. Later Phaks Eight and Nine were organized with some Thai congregations and some Chinese congregations who didn’t .want to join the Seventh District. These were both in the southern peninsula of Thailand. Phak Ten, added in 1948, is composed of Karen churches, related to the Karen Baptists of Burma. Phak Eleven was formed in 1955 of Chinese and Thai churches in the Nakom Pathom area, related to the British Churches of Christ Mission.,and the United Christian MissionarySociety.PhakTwelve was organized in 1959 of Chinese Baptist Churches. Phak Thirteen- was just organized in December 1974, and i s composed of one Chinese and several Thai churches around Udorn in northeast Thailand. These churches, were originally affiliated with the. Christian .and Missionary Alliance. • ( When the Seventh District, was. organized in 1934, seven congregations were included:., , > e.

52 1. Maitrichit Chinese Baptist Church. This church withdrew from the District in 1953 over arguments with some Sapan Luang people over the mode of baptism. In 1959 it joined with some other Baptist churches to form the Twelfth District. 2. The Sapan Luang Church. -* 3. ,■»> The Sathorn Church. 4. The Nakorn Pathom Chinese Church. This church withdrew from the Seventh District in 1955 to join with two Thai churches in the same area to form the Eleventh District. 5. The Cholburi Chinese Church. This church dates from 1921, and has had very. slow growth. In 1974 it became selfsupporting financially, and launched a campaign to raise $20,000 to open a kindergarten under the auspices of the church. The membership was 51 in 1973. 6. The Petriu (Chachengsao) Church. In 1918 a chapel and school for Chinese was opened here with Mr. Lim Ngi Tsai as pastor-teacher.. The school was later closed by the Thai government. The church split away from the Seventh District, and joined -.the Southern Baptist Mission in 1960 when the Baptists provided funds for them to build a new church building. Membership now is 60. 7. The- Lunghuniam Church. This church was started by members .of the Maitrichit Baptist Church about 1932, and was located about 80 miles southeast of Bangkok. In 1953 it was moyed to Hua Kun Chae and is. now part of the Twelfth District; Membership is-about 60. * ;* Since the end .of the' Japanese War, ten new churches'have been added to the -Seventh. District. These all started with a nucleus of believers either from China or from one of the Bangkok churches. The largest of these i s the church at Haadyai.t A. few?.Christian faihilies'had settled-there-from China and from central Thailand. The Chinese Presbyterian churches in

53

Singapore and Malaysia sent Mr. Lim Pue Ngi there in 1945 to organize a new church. They also provided most of the funds for the first building. When Mr. Lim accepted the pastorate of the Maitrichit Church in Bangkok, the Singapore churches were unable to send anyone to take his place. After mutual agreement, the church was transferred to the Seventh District, Church of Christ in Thailand, in 1948. At that time the church had 50 members. The writer was assigned to work there in 1951, after having spent three years in Chinese language study in China. There was a Chinese community of about 50,000 in Haadyai, many of them new arrivals from other places. Business was good because of the high price of rubber during and after the Korean War. Many young people were open to the Gospel. Good Chinese evangelists from Penang, Singapore, and Hongkong were invited to hold special meetings. By 1964 membership had increased to 200, and 15 young people from the church were preparing for service in the church at Bible schools and seminaries in Bangkok, Hongkong, and Singapore. Map 3 shows the present location of these workers. The promise of Acts 1:8 has been fulfilled in the experience of the Haadyai church and in the witness of these young people who have now scattered to many places to tell people of the Christ they met in Haadyai; In 1961 the church built a social hall and apartments for the church staff for a cost of SI 3,000. In 1966 a new sanctuary and classroom building was constructed for a cost of $40,000. Two thirds of these building expenses were contributed by the Chinese Christians of Thailand. The church i s now operating a nursery school and kindergarten with 110 children enrolled. TABLE 12

Seventh District Churches Church

Year of Founding 1. Sapan Luang, Bangkok 1896 2. Sathorn, Bangkok 1919

1973 Language Members Teochiu, Thai 1147 Cantonese, Thai 326

54

MAP 3

(2)

(2)

Beginning from Haadyai, to the Uttermost Parts of the Earth" Young people converted in Haadyai, now in Christian Servicei Bangkok, 2 men, 2 women Hua Kun Chae, 1 woman Chiangmai, 2 men Chlangrai, I woman Lampang, 1 man

Singapore, 1 woman Hongkong, 3 women Taiwan, 2 women England, 1 man U.S.A., 2 men

55

3. 4. 5* 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14.

Haadyai Chiangmai Cholburi Tepanhin Tha Rua Lampang Phitsanuloke Takli Suwan Galok Uttradit Chantaburi Bang Kaeo

1945 1951 1921 1949 1923 1954 1954 1962 1965 1957 1971 1972

Teochiu, Hakka Teochiu, Thai Teochiu Teochiu, Thai Hakka Hakka Hakka Teochiu Teochiu Teochiu Teochiu Hakka Total

111 68 51 41 12 20 20 21 29 8 7 22 1883

The Seventh District has established a “Pastor’s Welfare Endowment Fund,” and provisions are made for retirement pension, for savings, for medical and hospital expenses, and for assistance in the education of children. In 1941 Miss Chao Wei Chen came from China and during the years of the Japanese War conducted two training classes for church workers. A total of' nine or- ten men and women attended, of whom five are still active in the ministry of the church. From 1946 to 1951 the Rev. Graham Fuller sponsored a Chinese Bible School on the ground floor of his residence. Classes were held for half a day. After the Rev. and Mrs. Clifford Chaffee arrived in 1951, the curriculum and staff of the school were expanded. Miss Mary Hsu, Miss Ruth Soong, and the Rev. Abraham Hsu were secured from Hongkong a s the Chinese faculty for the school. Mr. Chaffee was the principal from 1951 to 1972. Mrs. Chaffee made a great contribution to the students and to all the churches through her music training. In January 1960 the school was officially registered with the Thai government as a religious school, under the name “Bible Training Center.” The three-year course of study included Bible, Christian Education, music, and evangelism. Classes

56 MAP 4

Lompang Nongkoi Fdori

;nponom

Tak, Khon Khan

[□kornsawon Ut>ol 'Nakornrojsima |

l

Ayughya

iXancfianobun

QT NJsangkok

G U L F - O F -----~ T H A I L A N D ------

N a k or n s r t t h a m a r a t Bhuksti

Location of Chinese Churches in Seventh District, Church, of Christ in Thailand

2 3 4 5 6 7 S 9

Bangkok Sapan Luang Sathorn Chiangmai Lampang Uttradit Suwan Galok Phitsanulok Tepanhin Takli Tharua . Cholburi . Chantaburi . Bang Kaeo . . Haadyai

57 were held in Chinese, Thai, and English. In July 1960 the school purchased a new site on Sawaddi Lane, Bangkapi, and men’s and women’s dormitories, principal’s apartment, and a library were constructed. For many years entrance requirements included a seventhgrade education, with a knowledge of both Thai and Chinese. Now a tenth-grade diploma i s required for entrance. Threefourths of all the pastors and preachers in all the Chinese churches in Thailand are former students of this school. In 1970 the name was changed to Bangkok Institute of Theology in an attempt to upgrade standards. It is an associate member of the Southeast Asian Association of Theological Schools. The Board of Trustees of the Institute is elected by the Seventh District, and the Seventh District takes responsibility for the financing of the school. Since 1960 the American Presbyterians have made an annual grant of $2,500 toward the operating expenses of the school. Previous to 1972, the District had succeeded in raising $25,000 in endowment funds. Beginning in 1973, a new five-year drive for endowment funds was begun. The goal i s to raise another $35,000 by the end of 1977. If this campaign i s successful, the school should be able to continue its vital work without subsidy from abroad.

58

6 OTHER CHINESE CHURCHES In the Eighth District of the CCT there are seven congregations, five of them Chinese. In 1973 the District reported a total membership of 503, of whom 350 are estimated to be Chinese, In this District, Chinese congregations are found in the towns of Ratburi, Petburi, Thepsakae, Chumporn, and Bandorn. In the Ninth District, in the Trang area there were several Chinese churches before the Japanese War. In the city of Trang one-third of the church members were Chinese, and Sunday services were held in both Thai and Chinese. Since the war the Chinese service has been discontinued and the church i s now completely Thai -speaking. However, the main leadership in the church still comes from Chinese families. Former Chinese- speaking churches in Huey YotandKantang have also become Thai -speaking. In 1906 the British Churches of Christ sent Dr. and Mrs. Percy Clark and Miss Halliday to Nakorn Pathom. Till 1942 they worked through village evangelism, schools, hospital, by river boat, by foot, by cart, to win men and women to Christ. They had about 900 baptisms, of whom the large majority were Chinese. During the Japanese War, the Clarks were interned, some of the Chinese congregations moved out of restricted areas, and many others were scattered to other places never to return to Nakorn Pathom to live (McGavran 1956:6).

59

After the war the missionary work in that area was taken up by the United Christian Missionary Society from the United States. Dr. Donald McGavran made a study ofthe Thai and Chinese churches in Nakorn Pathom in 1956, and came to the conclusion that the Chinese showed the most promise for a growing church. He said, "The staunch faith of the Chinese church, the upstanding character of its members, their willingness to contribute, their self-respect, and recently the fervency of the prayer life of the younger group, all combine to make me believe that if there is any church which can be fanned into a spreading flame, it is the Chinese church” (McGavran 1956:12). In 1973 the Chinese church in Nakorn Pathom numberedabout 200 resident members.

CHINESE CHURCHES OF OTHER MISSIONS 1. The Christian Brethren Mission at Puket and Thungsong. Christian Brethren from England began work on the island of Puket in 1882. In 1889 one of the Chinese believers gave his two-storey shophouse to the church for a meeting place. The church in Puket i s still meeting there. A group of about 100 believers, nearly all men, was built up by 1929. Many of them had Thai wives who refused to become Christians. Later during the Japanese War, many of these men died or moved away and' the church went down to less than thirty members. Through the dedicated work of several missionaries, some of whom know Mandarin, the church has been built back up to about 100 members again. 2. The Seventh-Day Adventist Mission. Thi s mission opened a definite work for Chinese in 1918, when they- sent the Rev. and Mrs. E. L. Longway to Bangkok. Their work did not begin’ to grow until after the Japanese War, when they established a large modern hospital in Bangkok, and clinics in Puket and Haadyai. They have developed Chinese Churches in Bangkok, Puket, and Haadyai, both from new converts through their hospital and school work and from the enticement of members of other churches. They are also operating a very successful English school in Bangkok.

60

MAP 5

iLompong wflNongkQ* SUor Tafci

.Sukr>othat • Pit&onutqk

2

Second D i s t r i c t Chiangrai Chiangkham Sixth D i s t r i c t Z i o n (Bangkok)

frJokornsawQn

3

Eighth District Ratburi Petburi Tapsekae Chumporn Bandom Eleventh District Nakom Fathom

5

Thirteenth Udorn

Uboi

'No kornr a j s i mq

JANG KOK

GULF TH

~ OF.

A/ LAND

L o c a t i o n o f other C h i n e s e Churches i n the Church o f C h r i s t in T h a i l a n d

District

61 3. The Southern Baptist Mission. Southern Baptist work in Thailand was begun in 1949 by missionaries transferred from China. Some of them spoke Cantonese and some spoke Mandarin. Grace Baptist Church was organized in 1951. It has developed into the only Mandarin -speaking congregation in Bangkok, and thus meets a need not met by other Chinese language churches. Membership in 1974 was about 150. New Hope Baptist Church (Teochiu- speaking) was organized in 1954 by young people who were converted through their participation in English classes taught by the missionaries. Membership in 1974 was about 50. Antioch Church, also Teochiu- speaking, was founded a few years later and has also grown to a membership of 50. Both of the Teochiu churches are pastored by Chinese. None of the missionaries have learned Teochiu. Among their 42 missionaries in Thailand, only two are able to speak Chinese—Dr. and Mrs. Glenn Morris. The Southern Baptists have also established several Thai churches in Bangkok and in outlying cities. Most of their converts are young people extracted from their families, and this does not create a strong, stable church. The Thailand Baptist Seminary was started in 1952, with Dr. Glenn Morris a s principal. The first four graduates were all Chinese, and for the next ten years at least half of the students were Chinese. Now, however, they are nearly all Thai. 4. Churches of Christ (Texas). This mission started a Chinese congregation in Bangkok about 1960. None of the missionaries could speak Chinese, and they engaged a Chinese preacher who had formerly been associated with the Christian Assembly (Little Flock). 5. The Chinese Little Flock. There are two churches of the Little Flock in Bangkok—one a split off from the other. Together they have about 200 members. There are two more Little Flock churches at Naborn and Klong Chandi in south Thailand, each with about 100 members. These are all Hokchiu- speaking (Foochow) Chinese who came from China to develop rubber plantations.

62

64

iLam pong Nongkai

Tak,

Southern B a p t i s t Bangkok ( 3 ) Cha c h o e n g s a o

PltSQHulok ,Khori Khan

2 Ubol

{ Yf ,v y u i ikpncbanaQuri

Brethren Phuket

T H A I L A N D - ------

Bhukat]

Chinese Churches not a f f i l i a t e d Church of C h r i s t in T h a i l a n d

C h r i s t i a n Assembly Bangkok ( 2 ) Chandi Nabopi Narathiwat

-with the

63

missions: FIRST NEGLECT, THEN DISCOURAGEMENT NEGLECT BY THE MISSIONS The brief survey of the history of Christianity in Thailand has shown that at several times in the past one hundred and fifty years, Chinese have been thought to be more responsive to the Christian message than the Thai. At the same time the missions made only a very little effort to establish churches among the Chinese, and preferred to have most of their m i s sionaries learn Thai and attempt to build up a Christian church among the Thai people. What poor strategy it is to neglect the responsive people and concentrate on the resistant! It is as if a farmer overlooked the ripened grain field and tried to harvest a field where the grain was only half grown. How can this missionary strategy be explained? (1) Missionary strategists were hoping to establish a permanent church in Thailand, and they thought that could only be done by concentrating on the Thai people. They considered the Chinese as living in Thailand temporarily and then returning to China. Therefore work among the Chinese would be wasted effort toward establishing a permanent church in Thailand. If a missionary had a concern for the Chinese, he usually went to China if possible.

64

However, the mobility of the Chinese should be seen as an asset for the wider spread of the Gospel. Earnest Chinese Christians, firmly grounded in Christian truth, with a vital experience of the living Christ, and instructed in methods of church planting, could themselves become the ones who would help in a more rapid spread of the Gospel to different areas. (2) Most Protestant missionaries in Thailand were from the majority race in their own country and unconsciously identified with the majority people in Thailand—the Thai. They expected minority peoples eventually to be assimilated into the majority people’s society, adopt their language and customs, and become like the majority group. There have been American missionaries who told the Chinese, “You must become Thai.” What an effective way to squelch Chinese responsiveness to the Gospel! The largest mission group now in Thailand, when they began work in Thailand in 1951, made it their official policy to reach the Chinese through the Thai language. One wonders how many Chinese have become Christian in the 24 years of work under this policy? Dr. Donald McGavran’s statement that people do not like to become Christian if it requires their crossing racial, linguistic, or class barriers (1970:198), should be considered by all crosscultural missionaries. The Chinese have self-respect. They are proud, of their five thousand years of continuous culture. They like their own language, and have a special esteem and respect for any foreigner who is interested in them enough to learn their language. (3) Most Americans are not proficient linguists. Having worked hard to learn Thai, they want to use it lest they lose it. The thought of having to learn Thai first (because they are living in Thailand), and then learn Chinese too (because they want to reach the Chinese), i s too great a task for the average American missionary. Missionaries further excuse themselves from learning Chinese by saying that in another twenty years the Chinese will all be speaking Thai. It i s true that many of the young people from Chinese families now speak more Thai

65

than Chinese. But it is not true to say that Chinese will cease to be spoken in Thailand in another 20 years, or even another 50 years. The Chinese are not about to give up their beloved language and culture that easily. (4) Missionaries have not been prepared to deal with the diverse elements of the population in Thailand. In reality the population of the country i s a mosaic made up of many different peoples: Thai, Chinese, Malay, Karen, Lisu, Meo, and others. Thai themselves may be divided according to central Thai using the Bangkok dialect, northern Thai speaking Lao, and southern Thai with their distinctive southern language. Then there i s the distinction between ethnic Thai and Thai of mixed ThaiChinese parentage. Then there are aliens who have become nationalized Thai citizens. There arealso Vietnamese and Cambodians. The Chinese are sub-divided into at least eight linguistic groups, so even the Chinese cannot be approached as one homogeneous unit. The hill tribes of north Thailand also include almost 10 different tribes, with different languages and different customs. This diversity makes the missionary task extremely difficult. But effective missionary strategy calls for the recognition of the different homogeneous units, for seeking to determine their degree of receptivity for the Gospel, and for the concentrating of efforts where it seems that God has prepared a ripened harvest. It is unrealistic and self-defeating to attempt to approach all these diverse groups through the medium of the Thai language. It is also a mistake to think that one approach will be effective.for these different peoples. From the standpoint of Biblical theology, Christians believe that God i s the creator of all the peoples of the earth. God desires to be glorified in each and every one of the cultures of men. Just as every individual Christian can glorify God in his own particular way, even so every culture can give honor to God in a distinctive way. God does not make all individual Christians alike, nor does He require that all of the cultures of the world be changed into a uniform pattern.

66

The pluralism of peoples and cultures complicates the missionary task, but at the same time it provides an opportunity to see the amazing grace ofGodatwork in many different ways. This diversity of peoples can only be reached by the Gospel as more Christians of all races and cultures think about effective methods of cross-cultural communication. To insist that the receptors become like the communicator (be he American, Japanese, Chinese, Thai, or Karen) i s to be certain of failure in communicating Christ. (5) Comity arrangements hindered Presbyterians from work among Chinese when it was understood that the Baptists would have the Chinese as their main sphere of evangelization. Even though there were no Baptist missionaries in Bangkok 18421864, and after 1884, the Presbyterians still did nothing until the migration of Chinese Christians from Presbyterian churches in China put pressure on them. Those missions which were working in the various south China coastal areas in most cases did not have missions in the Southeast Asian countries to which the Chinese migrated. Those missions could have continued work among those same linguistic groups in Southeast Asia after the communists took the mainland. But in most cases they did not do so. There were two missions in the Swatow area —the English Presbyterians and the American Baptists. In 1952 the Baptists sent three o r four of their Teochiu-speaking people to Thailand. They found a warm welcome on the part of the Chinese. Thailand had not been an area of work for the English Presbyterians, and so they sent none of their missionaries to evangelize the Teochiu in Thailand. The American Presbyterians had a number of missionaries on Hainan Island, but the two families transferred to Thailand did not attempt to found churches among the 278,000 Hainanese there. None of the Presbyterian missionaries were sent to Singapore, Malaya, Vietnam, or Hongkong, where there were quite large numbers of Hainanese.

67 Missions among the Hakka people in China included the American Baptist, English Presbyterian, London Missionary Society, and Basel Mission. There are an estimated 400,000 to 500,000 Hakka Chinese in Thailand, but the only Hakka- speaking missionary t o be transferred to Thailand was Miss Louise Giffin of the American Baptists. She could have had a great . ministry among the Hakkas in Thailand, as the Hakkas love and respect her, but her mission assigned herto school work where she was kept tied down, and thus unable to carry out any church-planting work in the Hakka communities. However, she was instrumental in helping to establish one Hakka church in Bangkok, and could have established more ifher mission had given her the opportunity.

DISCOURAGEMENT OF EX-CHINA MISSIONARIES On the other hand, most of the ex -China missionaries who were transferred to Thailand after 1950 had learned Mandarin in China. In Thailand most of them found little opportunity to reach the Overseas Chinese through Mandarin, so they either learned Thai and worked with the Thai Christian community, or they became discouraged and sought other places to work. The Christian and Missionary Alliance assigned the Rev. E. A. Truax t o their field in northeast Thailand from 1952 to 1962, but he felt handicapped because so few Chinese he met could speak Mandarin and he could not speak Teochiu. He studied some but did not become fluent in it. He was further limited by the Mission policy which did not allow him to engage a Teochiu assistant. The only Chinese church in the CMA area is found in Udorn, and it was established by the Chinese themselves. A few Chinese Christian families living in Korat and Ubon were expected to join the Thai churches and they were spiritually starved as a result. The other ex -China CMA missionaries have all gone into Thai work. The Southern Baptist Mission provides another example. Some of their first missionaries in Bangkok in 1949 and 1951 could speak Cantonese, and some could speak Mandarin. Thai-

68 land had a Cantonese community of about 160,000 in 1955. The Presbyterians had one missionary family who spoke Cantonese and there was one Cantonese church of 300 members. But these Cantonese-speaking Baptist missionaries failed to find an effective approach to the Cantonese in Bangkok, and were transferred to other fields after a few years of unfruitful work. The Southern Baptists started work in Hongkong at the same time. In 1960 they had 42 missionaries in Thailand and 38 in Hongkong. The results of ten years work in the two places varied enormously. At the close of the decade in Thailand the membership of churches planted by Southern Baptists was 355; in Hongkong it was 12,527 (McGavran 1970:217). The experience of most ex-China missionaries in Thailand is that they have not found the Chinese there responsive to their method of presenting the Christian message. Were they using the right method? Were they using the right language? Were they aware of the homogeneous units among the Chinese? Did they understand Overseas Chinese religious thinking and thus present Christ in a relevant way? Did their approach take advantage of Chinese family solidarity or fight against it? Did they ever learn what the felt needs of the Chinese in Thailand were? Did they identify themselves with Chinese in order to win them to Christ? Or must the Chinese be considered unresponsive to Christianity?

Year 1920

5,000

10,000

15,000

'-*

1925

1935

.1940

1945 ' 1950

. 1955

1960 '1965

Graph Showing ; the Increase in- Membership of The Church of Christ in Thailand, 1920-19,73

1930

GRAPH 3

20,000

25,000

Members npo.ooo

,

1970 ‘ 1975

5,000

10,000

000 GT

boo'oe

boo'Gt

Members ’ '3o,ooor

69

70

8 GROWTH OF THAI AND CHINESE CHURCHES COMPARED In order to gain a clearer understanding of the receptivity of the Chinese to the Gospel, let us compare the growth of the Thai and Chinese churches in the Church of Christ in Thailand, especially in the 25 years from 1948 to 1973. First of all, consider the graph showing the total number of communicant members of the Church of Christ in Thailand from 1920 to 1973, based on figures provided by the office of the General Secretary of the CCT. In looking at this graph of growth, we can divide it into three periods, from 1920 to 1945, from 1945 to 1970, and from 1970 to 1973. In the first 25-year period, membership increased from 8,000 to 10,000, for an average annual growth rate of only .9%. Thai Buddhists were very resistant to the Gospel as preached by the missionaries. The great Depression in the middle of this period and the Japanese War at the end also influenced mission work greatly. The 25-year period following the Japanese War shows that the church grew from 10,000 members to 21,322 members, for an average annual growth rate of 3%. Immediately after the war, the evangelistic efforts of several Thai preachers resulted in a larger number of conversions than the Thai church had previously experienced. Enrollment at all the Christian

71

GRAPH 4 8

------ -------

6 5_ _ _

4_ 3

j—

6 5 . ....

i

4

-------._F — ----

3

Population Growth

cftarithmic Y e a ! 10 t o th« inch

1950 1955 1960 1965 1970 1975

Thai Churches - - -Chinese Churches Growth Rate of Thai and Chinese Churches Church of Christ in Thailand, Compared 1948-1973 Population Growth - 3% per annum Chinese Churches -< 5.1% per annum r Thai Churches - u n t i l 1970, 2.1% after 1970, 8% per annum

GRAPH

5

100%

100%

100%

Thai

Thai

Thai

87

92.9

7.1% 1948

Chinese

12,6? 1970

89%

11% 1973

Comparison of the Percentage of Thai and Chinese i n the Church of Christ in Thailand

73 schools grew rapidly, and some students were won to Christ in the schools. The hospitals were expanded. There was a great influx of missionaires from the United States, Germany, Japan, Korea, India, and the Philippines. New efforts were initiated among university students. Rural improvement programs were launched, and a beginning was made in industrial evangelism. If the Chinese churches in the Seventh and Twelfth Districts are compared with the rest of the church for the same period, we find that the Chinese churches had an annual growth rate of 5.1% as compared with a rate of 2.1% for the Thai churches. In 1948 the Chinese composed 7.1% of the national church membership, and by 1970 they had .increased to 12.6% of the total. Does this growth of the Chinese churches suggest that there i s a measure of receptivity on the part of the Chinese? TABLE 13 Comparison of Thai and Chinese Membership

Thai Members % of total Chinese % of total

1948 11,611 92.9%

1970 18,619 87.4%

AAGR 2.1%

889 7.1%

2,703 12.6%

5.1%

The actual percentage of Chinese should be larger, a s the figures used for comparison are only taken from the Seventh and Twelfth Districts. There are also Chinese congregations in Districts Two, Six, Eight, and Eleven which have been included in the Thai church figures, as the writer did not have access to the exact membership figures for them to determine increase or decrease over the period studied.

"DOUBLE THE CHURCH” MOVEMENT In December 1970 the CCT General Assembly voted to set the goal of doubling its membership by the next General

74 /Assembly meeting in December 1974. The original motion, was presented by the Rev. Paul Manikam, a fraternal worker sent to Thailand by the Church of South India. His idea was that each Christian should lead one other person to Christ during this four-year- period. He wanted all the Christians to become fruitful. Many of the pastors and church leaders had received a stimulus to plan and work for church growth through Dr. Donald McGavran’s workshops on church growth in Bangkok and Chiangmai, and supported Mr. Manikam’s proposal. Figures for the first three years of the “Double the Membership” movement show that the total membership increased from 21,322 to 26,691, for an average annual growth rate of 7%. Below are the detailed figures by districts for the first three years of this special effort, as reported to the Seventh District by Elder Vibune Chowchuvech,. treasurer of the District.

TABLE 14 “Double the Church” Figures by Districts

1. 2.. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12.

District

1970 1971 1972

Chiangmai Chiangrai Lampang Prae Nan Bangkok- Udorn Chinese Petburi-Bandorn Nakorn Sritamarat Karen Tribes Nakorn Pathom Chinese Baptist

5426 4748 1105 1891 1590 1747 1779 422 208 950 532 924

Totals

6396 4425 1277 1288 1824 2193 1737 459 242 874 504 981

6662 5500 1253 1855 1934 2193 1693 479 247 987 525 998

1973 % increase 7400 6125 1325 ( 1855)* (1934)* 2554 1883 506 304 1095 666 1044

21322 22210 24526 26691

*No new report for 1973.

36% 30 20 -2 22 46 6 20 46 15 25 13 25%

75

In this three -year period the Thai churches had an annual growth rate of 8%, while the Chinese churches in Districts Seven and Twelve combined only grew at a rate of 3%. Many of the churches in north Thailand made serious efforts to win new people to ’Christ, but the Chinese Christians made no comparable effort. k

The growth or non-growth of the church depends not only t on the responsiveness of people in the community, but also on the kind of efforts made by the Christian people for the conversion of others, if no one i s being added to the church, it may be because Christians are doing nothing for the conversion of people. TABLE 15

Comparison of Thai and Chinese Membership 1970

.1973

AAGR

Thai Members % of total

18,619 87.4%

23,764 89%

8%

Chinese % of total

2,703 12.6%

2,927 11%

:,3%

GROWTH AND NON GROWTH IN THE SEVENTH DISTRICT In the preceding chapter on the historical development of the Chinese churches in Thailand, mention was made pf all - the congregations making up the Seventh District. When the membership figures are examined over a period of years, it will be seen that the Yellow Bridge Church shows some growth, while most of the other churches remained quite static, and some even declined in memberstiip. This i s a situation that needs further analysis. From 1948 to 1974 the Seventh District had an increase from 889 to 1982 members (123% increase), or an average annual

76

GRAPH 6

9. 5. 7. 6. 5.

3.

>garitbmlc Year 10 to the Inch

1950 1955 1960 1965 1970 1975 —Sapan Luang Church — — Rest of Seventh District Churches

Comparison of Growth Rate of Sapan Luang Church with Rest of the Seventh District Churches Combined, 1948-1973

77

growth rate of 3%. This i s about the same a s the growth rate of the national church during the same period. If the growth of the Sapan Luang (Yellow Bridge) Church i s compared with the growth of all the other churches in the district combined, some disturbing facts come to light. Consider the figures in Table 16. TABLE 16

Comparison of Seventh District Churches 1948

1961

% Increase

AAGR

I 1. Yellow Bridge Membership

374

750

100%

5.2%

2. Rest of District

515 -889

730 ■- 1480

41%

2.7%

1961.

1974

750 730 —— 1480

1206 776 — 1982

60% 6%

3.6% .5%

Total

1. Yellow Bridge 2. Rest of District Total

This shows that nearly all of the growth in the district since 1961 has been in the Yellow Bridge Church, and very little in all the rest of the churches. This i s a very serious problem, and seems to be a case of the strong getting stronger, and the weak remaining static. This i s a discouraging fact for the District to face, as the District has been making a great effort to provide funds for the support of a full-time pastor in each church. Resources have been poured into the Bangkok Institute of Theology to train young men and women for the ministry. But the work of these young preachers i s not resulting in the growth of these small congregations. After struggling for two

78

or three years with what seems to them a hopeless situation, the young preachers request a change to another place, and often the pattern of defeat i s repeated again. The additions to the Yellow Bridge Church were in three categories: (1) Adult baptisms (conversion growth), 54% of the total, (2) ‘Confirmations (3) Transfers

(biological

from

growth),

29% of the total,

other churches, 17% of the total.

The yearly figures for each category are given in Appendix C. This church has had some good pastors, many capable and dedicated laymen, many strong families,- lots of enthusiastic young people, two Christian day schools, and a visitation program. Every year there are two or three series of special preaching services conducted by outstanding Chinese preachers from Hongkong, Taiwan, Singapore, or Indonesia. The members of the Church have given at least $50,000 a year for Christian work every year since 1967. The growth and resources of the Sapan Luang Church, as contrasted with the static small-town churches, indicate that Bangkok offers the best opportunity for planting new churches in the immediate future.

HOMOGENEOUS UNITS IN THE THAI CHURCH There i s another study that should be undertaken if clear thinking and wise strategy are to be used in planning for the growth of the Thai churches. This i s the study of what homogeneous units are represented in the membership of the church. This type of study i s outside the scope of this paper, but it needs to be done especially for the Thai -speaking churches in Bangkok and central Thailand.

79 Some of the questions for which answers need to be found are: How many of the members

are ethnic Thai?

How many are mixed Thai -Chinese? (How many generations back was the father Chinese?) Are all the members of the family believing Christians? In Bangkok, does the congregation cater to Christians who have come from north Thailand? from south Thailand? from the schools and universities? from the working class? Such studies must be done in order to find different homogeneous units of people that may be receptive to the Gospel. If there are such receptive groups of people, ways must be found to provide them with the opportunity to hear the Gospel and draw them into churches where they will feel at home. For instance, I believe that a large percentage of the members of the Thai churches in Bangkok are either ethnic Chinese or mixed Thai-Chinese who are Thai -speaking. There are very few ethnic Thai who have become Christian. I am not able to prove this by research, and I have not had opportunity to observe these congregations carefully, but I believe thistobe so. I know that many of the pastors of the Thai congregations and the officers of the national church organization are of mixed ThaiChinese parentage. This i s a significant fact, and indicates the kind of people that the Thai church might approach with good results. In this connection, a survey of the students in the Christian schools i s also important. How many students are from Chinese homes? How many are ethnic Thai? If the school chaplain or the Christian teachers were to visit in the homes of the students, what languages would they need to know in order to communicate with the parents? Can these families be invited to any of the existing churches and find “their own kind of people” there?

80

INDICATORS OF RECEPTIVITY Edward Pentecost in Reaching the Unreached (1974: 91ff) proposes the following eight indicators to help in discerning whether or not a people i s likely to be responsive to the Christian message. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8.

Culture change Political change Economic change Migratory patterns Linguistic change Religious change Prototype image of what they would like to be Degree of influence of Christianity

The changes experienced by the overseas Chinese in most of these areas would indicate that they should be quite receptive to the Gospel, if itis communicated to them in the right manner. What i s the answer to the question, how responsive are the Chinese? There are indications of both resistance and receptivity. Chinese churches in Hongkong, the Philippines, Singapore, and Indonesia have all seen much greater growth than the Chinese churches in Thailand. Chinese in those countries have been responsive to the Gospel. Why not in Thailand? There i s a need to keep on studying, keep on seeking, and keep on praying until the way i s found to win them to the Lord Jesus Christ. In conclusion, where should the Chinese placed on the resistance-receptivity axis?

4 ______ 0 Resistant

5

in Thailand

, 10 Receptive

be

81

9 CHINESE CONCERN FOR EDUCATION The three largest Chinese congregations in Bangkok are all operating their own Christian day schools on both the primary and secondary levels. Some smaller congregations in the provincial towns have also started kindergartens and look forward to the development of primary schools. The initiative for these schools has come from the church members themselves, and the financing of them has been accomplished without very much foreign mission subsidy. Some of the reasons that Chinese Christians give for placing a high priority on Christian schools are presented below. (1) The first reason given i s that their children may receive their education under Christian auspices. Buddhism is the state religion of Thailand, and taught in all the government (public) schools. The regulations covering private schools allow Christian schools to teach Christian beliefs and morals instead of Buddhism. Because Christian parents do not like to have their . children indoctrinated with Buddhism in the schools, they give strong support for their own church-sponsored schools. (2) A second reason i s that they hope this will give their children an opportunity to learn more Chinese. Chinese Christians, along with the Chinese community in general, place high value on the transmission of Chinese language and culture to

82 their children and grandchildren, and see the school as an important place to accomplish this. Western missionaries have not often supported the Chinese in meeting this felt need. Some have seen the Chinese church schools as competitive to the mission-established schools. They also feartheChinese schools will retard the assimilation of Chinese into Thai society. (Missionaries themselves, however, also establish their own schools for the education of their children in English, and would never allow the assimilation of their children into Thai society.) Chinese schools as operated under the present government regulations enable the students to live within both Chinese and Thai societies. The general community regards the church’s work in schools as “education for education’s sake,” and different from some other individually-owned private 'schools whose purpose seems to be financial profit. So 70-80% of the students in the Christian schools come from non-Christianfamilies, who choose to send their children to these schools because they regard the training given as superior to that of other private or government schools. (3) The Chinese Christians regard this willingness of nonChristians to enroll their children in the church schools as their God-given evangelistic opportunity. Great importance i s placed on the daily chapel service and the teaching of Christian truth. All the students are taught to pray and to memorize Scripture. They are encouraged to attend Sunday School and youth activities at the church. The Chinese have traditionally had a high regard for teachers. Although the position of teachers in overseas Chinese society i s lower than in China, still parents are appreciative of the efforts that teachers make to educate their children. The relationship established between the school and the home provides the church with a great opportunity to approach the family and speak of the benefits of the Christian faith. In fact, wherever Christians are engaged in school work, whether as individuals or as a church organization, they should regard the bridge it

83

gives them to the family of the student a s their greatest evangelistic opportunity. (4) After classroom facilities are constructed, these schools are self-supporting financially, and in some cases provide resources for additional expansion of church work. Chinese businessmen are very skillful in handling the finances of the school so that it does not become a burden to the church. The major problem facing the churches in regard to their schools i s that of finding capable Christian teachers. The Chinese churches are able to raise money for school buildings, get government permission to open a school and attract large numbers of students. But the churches are not producing Christian teachers. Except for the top administrators, they must rely on non-Christians to staff the schools. Attempts to solve this problem are being made by providing .Scholarship aid for those who want to major in education and by encouraging Christian young people to enter the teaching profession. However, response from the church families has been very weak.

84

10 INDIGENOUS CULTURAL ADAPTATIONS Christianity has been introduced into Thailand by Westerners and i s generally regarded as a “foreign religion.” Its institutions are foreign. The architecture of its buildings i s foreign. Its music i s foreign. Its emphasis on individual conversion and the separation of its members from their original social relationships also cause people to regard it a s foreign. This foreignness of Christianity as introduced and practiced in Thailand constitutes a difficult barrier for the present-day missionary to overcome. Presbyterian mission administrators have attempted to solve this problem in the following ways: (1) By elevating Thai Christians to all places of leadership, arid restricting missionaries from holding administrative positions in the church. (2) By transfer of the ownership of mission property to the Foundation of the Church ofChrist in Thailand, and by transferring authority for all educational and medical institutions to Thai Christians. (3) By engaging a Thai lawyer to be the mission treasurer.

85 (4) By dissolution of the mission organization in Thailand and by placing Presbyterian personnel under the jurisdiction of the Thai church as fraternal workers. •

I

*■

(5) By encouraging other Asian missionaries to come and work in Thailand, in order to present an international image of Christianity. ’ These steps are all necessary steps if the Christian church in Thailand i s to acquire a sense of selfhood, but they do not directly solve the question of foreignness and indigeneity. These steps are important for the improvement of relationships between national Christians and Western missionaries. The writer’s experience a s a “fraternal worker” has been a happy one, as he has been accepted as a brother in Christ by Chinese Christians and has been given opportunities to use his spiritual gifts for ministry to the church and for evangelism. He feels further that the missionary must identify himself with the Christian community as a prerequisite for evangelism which has the goal of incorporating new believers into that community. If a missionary does not have the respect and acceptance of the Christian community, how can he expect togain the respect of the non -Christians? ” ■ But this does not solve the problem of foreignness or indigeneity of Christianity in Thailand. With Thai leaders in control of the church and the ’church institutions, they may choose t o move in the direction of indigenous cultural forms, or they may retain the Western forms a s they have received them. Furthermore, some of the indigenous adaptations made by the Chinese Christians would not be suitable for Thai Christians, and vice—versa, because they represent two different cultures. > • .* 1

SPECIAL OBSERVANCE OF CHINESE FESTIVALS (1) Chinese New Year i s the most important holiday observance for the whole Chinese community. Christians, like nonChristians, -obs'erve New Year’s Day by cleaning the house,

86

preparing the New Year’s.Feast, buying new clothes for all the family, paying up old debts., and giving gifts, to the children. In addition, the churches hold a special worship service on the morning of Chinese New Year’s Day. It i s one of the best attended services of the whole year. The motivation behind this observance i s (1) to thank God for His blessings in the past, and (2) to seek God’s guidance for the coming year. Thanksgiving to God for His blessings in the. past are expressed in song and prayers, and also by giving a special Thank-offering to God. One may not appear before the Lord empty-handed. The New Year’s offering is usually at least ten times the.amount.of a regular Sunday offering. In Penang there are Chinese churches whose whole year’s operating expenses depend almost entirely upon the New Year’s offering. Sermon themes for this service are chosen carefully, and avoid all pessimism and mention of death. Emphasis i s on the promise of God to be with His people, to guide them, and to bless them in every way. In the family every attempt is made to have a harmonious and happy occasion. On the afternoon of New Year’s Day the officers of the church may visit in the homes of all the church members to wish them peace and prosperity for the new year and to pray together for God’s blessing on each family. Relativesand friends also visit in each other’s homes and strengthen kinship and friendship ties. Churches often conduct evangelistic meetings during the first two weeks of the new year, a s this is the time, that people have the most free time. Some of the Chinese churches in Thailand also have a special worship service on the morning of January 1, and sometimes during the first week of January a series of special meetings for prayer are held, to seek God’s guidance in church, home, and work for the coming year. However, attendance at these services is not large. (2) Ch’ingMing usually comes in late March or early April, and i s the day for the family to visit the graves of their

87

close family and relatives, to clean up the grave, to repaint the tombstone, and to remember the deceased. Many Christian families continue to visit graves on this day, but some have changed to the Saturday before'.Easter or Easter afternoon. Ch’ing Ming and Easter usually fall within ten days of each other. This combination of the Christian festival of resurrection and the visitation of the graves i s valuable for Chinese Christians, and helps them to affirm the hope that Christ’s victory over death gives them. (3) Mid-Autumn Moon Festival is on the fifteenth day of the eighth lunar month. Churches sometimes use this festival for a church-wide party, with games, riddles, fellowship and refreshment. Refreshments are the special “moon cakes” made for this day and the fresh fruits that are in season. For Christians .the observance of this day shifts from a nuclear family celebration to the wider “church family” fellowship, and i s mostly recreational in nature.

ENGAGEMENT AND WEDDING CEREMONIES Marriage customs of the Chinese include the making of arrangements by -the. parents of the couple_to be married, an engagement ceremony, a wedding ceremony, and a reception for the wedding guests. In the case of Christian families, the pastor i s often requested to officiate at an engagement service. This usually takes place at the home of the bride-to-be, after the two families have come to an agreement oh the amount of bride’s dowry, gifts, and arrangements. The ceremony is brief, and begins with a statement about the couple and their parents. A hymn is sung, followed by a reading from the Bible. Prayer is offered for the couple becoming engaged and for their two families. Then the couple exchange engagement rings. The benediction i s pronounced, and refreshments are served. Engagement candies and cookies presented to the girl’s family by the boy’s family are then distributed to the homes of friends and relatives to officially announce the engagement.

88 The wedding ceremony i s usually lield within a year after the engagement and is held at the church. The details of the ceremony vary according to the wishes ofthefamilies involved, but it is usually a mixture of Chinese and Western customs.

(1) Most ' families prefer to begin, with the Western form of the bridal procession, with the bride being escorted to the front of the church by her father. (2) The whole congregation sings a hymn expressing the ideals of a Christian home and the desires of the people for God’s blessing.on the new home. (3) This i s followed by a prayer of thanksgiving for God’s guidance in bringing the 'two young people together, gratitude for the love and sacrifice of the parents for their children, and prayer for God’s blessing on the new relationship now being established between these two families. (4) Then scripture is' read and the pastor has a few appropriate words of advice for the couple. (5) Then the .bride and groom make their vows to each other, exchange wedding rings, and sign the marriage certificate. .(6) The bride and groom .kneel for the pastoral prayer of God’s blessipg on their life together. . (7) The pastor proclaims them husband and wife. (8) The congregation sings the Doxology, and the benediction i s pronounced. ■ , r (9) Then the family often likes the couple to perform a ritual of bowing to the pastor, the groom’s parents, the bride’s parents, the go-betweens who have helped negotiate the arrangements, and to the guests. This is to express their respect and gratitude.

89 (10) This i s followed by the traditional Western recessional. Light refreshments are provided following the ceremony. I

At the wedding feast, usually held at a Chinese restaurant, there will be speeches by a few of the prominent guests, who say a few words of felicitation and blessing for the couple. Non-Christian relatives and friends, after observing this type of marriage ceremony, often remark about how meaningful it i s .

FUNERAL CEREMONIES The Chinese churches place great importance on properly conducted funeral services. Some of the churches have specially-organized funeral societies, which arrange for Christians to rally around the family and help them with various activities connected with the funeral. In Thailand there are no funeral homes to prepare the body for burial.. When a church member dies, his family notifies the pastor. The pastor consults with the family regarding arrangements for the funeral. Either a member of the family or someone from the church is asked to go to the coffin company to buy a coffin. ‘There are both huge Chinese style and simple Western style coffins available. . ■ > The first ceremony i s .for the placing, of the corpse in the coffin, and is held at the home or hospital, depending on where the person died. This service is brief, and includes: An opening statement about the deceased A hymn Reading of Psalm 23 Prayer Benediction The company which sells coffins also provides men to help place the corpse in the coffin. Then it i s sealed properly in preparation for several days of funeral services.

90 If the person died at home, and if the home is large enough, the coffin will be placed downstairs in the front room for 3-7 days of funeral services. The length of the ceremonies depends on the age and position of the deceased and the convenience of the family. If the home is not large, the coffin will be taken to the church for the funeral ceremonies. Friends and relatives are notified ofthe death and the funeral arrangements, by word of mouth, by printed notices, or by paid announcement in the newspapers. If the person died at the hospital, the coffin is taken to the church, where nightly services are held. Members of the bereaved family wear mourning clothes of burlap, white cotton, or black cloth, depending on their relationship to the deceased. Friends and relatives attending the funeral are expected to wear black, dark blue, or white clothes to show their sorrow and sympathy for the family. Friends and relatives express their sympathy by sending floral wreaths, large cloth banners with appropriate expressions in Chinese words sewed onto the banner, or gifts of money to help the family with funeral expenses. The ceremony held each night i s about an hour long, and includes the following elements: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11.

Statement about the deceased A short Bible reading as a call to worship Hymn Prayer Scripture reading Hymn o r Special Music. Sermon Prayer Hymn Benediction Announcement about burial time and arrangements

91 12. Invitation for all to stayfor refreshments provided by the family. Themes for

the sermon fall into several categories:

1. Appreciation for the life and contribution of the deceased, emphasizing his example for the living to emulate. 2. The bliss of those who have died in the Lord. 3. Rewards for faithfulness in the Kingdom of Heaven. 4. Words of comfort for the sorrowing family. 5. God’s promises for both the present life and the hereafter. 1

6. The Christian doctrine of filial piety and respect for parents. When there are from three to seven services for each funeral, all of these themes may be touched on. The burial i s held on the third, fifth, or seventh day after death. Before the coffin is removed from the home o r church to be taken to the cemetery, a short ceremony is held. It consists of a hymn, a Scripture reading, and a prayer. Most of the Chinese churches in Thailand have their own cemeteries. After the funeral procession has reached the cemetery, a final ceremony i s held at the chapel there. The coffin i s put into the grave .with a committal ceremony. Then each person attending is presented with a handkerchief by the bereaved family, and refreshments are served. In this description of the Chinese Christian funeral, it will be seen that some pre-Christian Chinese forms have been retained, and are used to express Christian meanings. The

92 pastor and members of the church have the opportunity to meet a large number of relatives and acquaintances at these ceremonies. These contacts can be followed up in hopes of furthering a “web-movement” of extended family and relatives to Christ. A very important aspect of the funeral for the pastor i s that all who attend, both Christian and non-Christian, are in the frame of mind to give close attention to the Gospel message of redemption and victory over death.

CEREMONIES FOR NEW HOMES, STORES, AND FACTORIES Christian ceremonies for new homes, stores, and factories are performed on two occasions. The first is for groundbreaking and the beginning of construction. Non-Christians have a ritual for appeasing the spirits of the land who may be disturbed by the work of construction. There is a fear that the spirits may cause accidents o r sickness if they are not appeased by sacrificial offerings and prayers. Does the Christian still fear the adverse effects of antagonized spirits? Perhaps. But for the pastor, this is an opportunity to affirm that heaven and earth are created by God. The earth i s the Lord’s and the fullness thereof. God hears our prayers and protects his own. The ceremony includes: 1. A hymn, “This i s My Father’s World” 2. A Scripture reading 3. A brief statement about God’s power and protection 4. A prayer for God’s blessing. Often non-Christians are engaged in the construction project, and a ceremony such a s this may become a Christian witness which enables them" to see the protection of God and His control over the spiritual forces seeking to harm men. The second ceremony occurs when the building i s completed and ready to be used. A large number of relatives, friends,

93 and business associates are invited to be present for the occasion. The ceremony for the new home is as follows: 1. Brief statement about the family and the occasion of their moving to a new home. 2. Call to Worship and Invocation Prayer 3. Hymn 4. Reading of Psalm 127 and 128 5. Ten-minute sermon on how to enjoy God’s blessing on family life. 6. Prayer for God’s blessing on the family and their concerns. 7. Hymn 8. Benediction

The family then provides refreshments and invites the guests to tour the house. The ceremony for the opening of a store or factory i s shorter, but the purpose i s the same, namely, to pray for God’s blessing on the enterprise. This may sound strange to Westerners who compartmentalize their religious activities and their secular occupations. But even non-Christian Chinese common people have always felt that, even with the utmost exertion, human abilities and efforts alone were not sufficient to guarantee physical well-being, economic success, or family harmony. There was always the profound feeling that success or failure in these respects was not entirely within human control, but needed the blessing of spiritual forces (Yang 1960:28).

Christians have the all -important words of Jesus;, Abide in, me, and I in you. As the branch caunot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you unless you abide in me. I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in me, and I in him, he it .is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing (John 15:4-5 RSV). Those present gather on the sidewalk in.fro nt of the store. The pastor states the occasion, reads a passage from the Bible, and prays for God’s blessing on this enterpriseand all who are connected with it. Then he pulls a string to draw a cloth covering from the sign board, saying the words, “In the name of Jesus Christ, I now open this- store. May God grant blessing and success. Amen.” Then the host invites the guests to tour the premisesand provides them with refreshments. Among such ceremonies that the writer has performed are those for a corrugated-box factory, a gas station, a cosmetics factory, a used car company, a small department store, a dental clinic, a doctor’s office, a clothing factory, a plastic shoe factory, a detergent factory, a stationery store, a jewelry store, a photography studio, a marble quarry, a shopping center, a legal office, a furniture store, a goldsmith shop, a printing company, a private hospital, a dress-making shop, a restaurant, and many others. ■ ,i

After the ceremony for the opening of a new home o r store., the family makes a special thank-offering to the church, and gives the officiating pastor a small gift to express their gratitude to Kim.

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11 WHO WILL SOLVE THE LEADERSHIP PROBLEM? The' leadership problem of the Chinese churches has two aspects: (1) personnel for the. administration of the church and the nurture of Christians, and,(2) personnel for the evangelization of Chinese outside the church. 4

FOR THE CHRiSTIAH COMMUNITY There are., two missionary families serving as fraternal workers with the Seventh District,- CCT. One i s the Rev. and Mrs. David Luo, of the United Christian Missionary Society, who i s serving as principal of the Bangkok Institute of Theology. His training and abilities make him a. suitable person for his present position,, He, has six years until he reaches retirement age. • i The second family , i s the writer’s family, of the United Presbyterian .Church. He i s a District pastor and serves a s advisor to all the churches of the District. He will help the District to acquire “church growth eyes” and take steps for the establishment of new churches. He has twelve years until retirement. The American Baptists have assigned Miss Louise Giffen and the Rev. and Mrs. Keith Tennis to help in Sammuk Chris-

96 tian Academy, the secondary school belonging to the Maitrichit Baptist Church. Some of their other missionaries in Bangkok and Mahachai serve a s advisors to different Chinese churches, but do not speak much Chinese, and give only a limited amount of time to helping them. With the present downward trend of missionary support in the mainline denominations in the United States, it is very unlikely that these church societies will appoint any more people for Chinese evangelization in Thailand. So it is important for these missionary families to set their goals and strategy with this probability in mind. They should not count on more missionaries coming to continue their work. Mention has already been made that the initiative for establishing Chinese churches in Thailand came from the Christian families who migrated from Swatow, China. From 1915 to 1960 nearly all of the pastors were engaged from China also. These lay leaders and pastors, if still living, are all nearing seventy years of age. All those who came from China had a very strong commitment to Chinese language and culture, along with their zealous concern for the conversion of fellow-Chinese to Christ. The church activities, Sunday Schools, youth groups, and Christian day schools all helped to maintain the use of the Chinese language. The younger lay leaders now comingupinthe churches have been brought up in Thailand, are bilingual, and are less committed to Chinese culture than their parents were. Some of these new leaders are university graduates with advanced degrees from abroad. They are capable of handling all the matters of church and school administration. With the proper motivation and training, they, could also help to provide spiritual nurture for the church members. Between 1949 and 1963, the Chinese churches invited 12 seminary graduates from Hongkong and one from Taiwan to come to Thailand to be pastors of the churches o r to serve on the faculty of the Bangkok Institute of Theology. Of these

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thirteen, only two are still in Thailand now. One i s pastor of the Holy Light Baptist Church in Thonburi. The other is working for a Japanese firm and giving his weekends to help the churches.

Four of those who left Thailand did so because they were unable to secure permanent residence permits. ChineseChristians exerted great effort to obtain resident permits for the other seven, but each of them left after serving for only two or three years. They spoke Mandarin or Cantonese, and found it hard to identify with the Teochiu people. Some of them got Presbyterian scholarships for study in the U.S., and then turned to easier work elsewhere. Because of this disappointing experience, churches in Thailand are reluctant to invite new workers from abroad.

There are Chinese mission organizations in Taiwan and Hongkong who would like to send evangelists to Thailand, but they find it impossible to get a residence permit without bribing government officials at least S2,000.

This leaves only one solution to the leadership problem: train Thai-born Chinese for the ministry. The Bethel Bible School and the Bangkok Institute of Theology were both started for this purpose. However, the graduates of these two schools themselves and the churches ail feel that they need further education in Chinese. This is gotten by further training in Hongkong o r Taiwan. With the government restrictions on Chinese schools, the level of Chinese education inThailand is declining, and both the Bethel Bible School' and BIT are having difficulty in recruiting students who know very much Chinese. Yet the churches insist on their preachers having adequate Chinese to minister to the middle-aged people and older in the congregations. On the other hand, it i s necessary for the church workers to use Thai in ministering to the children and young people in the churches.

98 Of the 50 men and women serving as full-time pastors, pastor’s wives, or Bible teachers in the Chinese 'churches of the Church of Christ in Thailand now, 82% were born in Thailand. However, of those born in Thailand, 65% had theological study abroad in Hongkong, Taiwan, or Singapore. These are all places where the population i s largely Chinese and where Chinese culture and influence i s stronger than in Thailand. The combination of several years of primary -and secondary education in Thailand plus two to six years abroad in a predominantly Chinese community, has prepared them for bilingual and bi-cultural ministry in Thailand.

TABLE 17 Survey

of Chinese Full-time Church -Workers A s to Theological Training (December 19.74)

Place

1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. •

of Training

Seventh District, M w

Trained in China 1 1 Bangkok Inst. Theol. BIT and Taiwan 2 3 BIT and Hongkong Hongkong only 2 . 1 Singapore Bethel Bible School 0 Bethel and Hongkong , 1 Hongkong and .U.S. A. 0 Chiangmai Seminary .0 Totals

11

Twelfth District M w

.1 2 0 0 . J1 3 o- 0 2,, 0 3 2 1 .03 .0 0 0 0 0 1.- .1 0 0, 1 1 „0 1 . . o . b. 13

6

4,

Other Total ,CCT . . M w. M W 0 3 0 . 2 6 . 4 0 0 2 . 2 2 5 . 0 . 1 ,«3 :0 1 . 1 4 0 4 0 ,0 2,> 0 -0 1 0 •0 0 :10

6

1 3 3 3 4 0 1, 0 1

27r 23

99

Students Still in Training (December 1974) Place 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.

Bangkok Institute of Theology Bethel Bible School Hongkong (BIT graduates) Taiwan (BIT graduates) England (BIT and Taiwan grad) Totals

Men

Women

1 4 1 1 1

4 5 4 4 0

8

17

One of the problems faced by some of these workers is that of their relationship with older lay leaders in the churches. Young people are expected to respect their elders and defer to their wishes. The older, long-established lay leaders are experienced. The young people have just finished their schooling and are just beginning their ministry. They sometimes get d i s couraged because they say there are “too many bosses” in the church telling them what to do and what not to do. In order to provide spiritual inspiration and fellowship for pastors and lay leaders, the Seventh and Twelfth Districts have united in sponsoring a Chinese Christian Workers’ Conference annually since 1970. The conference is usually held at the seaside in a relaxed atmosphere. Well-known Chinese theologians and evangelists are invited to lead in Bible study and preach inspirational sermons. The fellowship of united prayer and the sharing of experiences and difficulties have been helpful to all attending. About 100 lhave attended each year. In the years to come it i s expected that this conference will provide an opportunity to study church growth theory and strategy, and to help all the churches make bold plans for growth.

THE UNEVANGELIZED MILLIONS The discussion of leadership to this point has just been about the training of pastors and lay leaders for the existing

100 Christian community of about 9,000 people. But what about the tremendous unfinished task of evangelizing the 3,000,000 Chinese in Thailand? The people sent by the mission societies of America are not doing it. The present Chinese pastors are doing it only in a limited way. The church has not seen the necessity of organizing special groups which will dedicate themselves to concentrate on this task until it i s finished. The church members are doing some near-neighbor and kinship witnessing as individuals. But who will take up the responsibility for the effective evangelization of these millions while there is still opportunity?

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12

STRATEGY FOR GREATER GROWTH From the foregoing analysis of Chinese churches, the following points stand out: < (1) Chinese churches have grown at a faster rate than Thai churches, even though the financial resources and personnel of the missions were concentrated almost entirely upon services related to the Thai churches. (2) The two large Teochiu churches, Sapan Luang and Maitrichit, have grown more rapidly than the other Chinese churches of-the country. i I

The conclusion’ to be drawn from these two facts i s that the greatest possibility for future growth is in the Chinese churches of Bangkok. Strategy for greater growth should begin here. The suggestions that I have to make are what seem to me to be reasonable and productive,, but the decision a s to whether or not these suggestions will be adopted or used is one that only the Chinese church leaders can make. The Chinese Christians themselves must desire the conversion of Chinese to Christ and the multiplication of Chinese churches. As Dr. Andrew Gih says so often, “If the Chinese are not interested in saving Chinese, who will be interested?” If the Chinese churches are motivated for growth, have faith that they can grow, set bold

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goals for growth, and work to achieve these goals, then we can expect to see God at work in a new and exciting way among the Chinese of Thailand.

I. HOLD CHURCH GROWTH SEMINARS AT THE CONGREGATIONAL LEVEL It is the local congregations that must grow bigger, a s well a s establish daughter churches. They must also produce the people and contribute the money that will result in overall church growth. Therefore, the local congregation must be motivated for growth. This can be done through the holding of a church growth seminar for all the officers and members of the congregation. I suggest that the first church growth seminar be held at the Sapan Luang Church. It i s a growing church. It has many potential leaders of great capability. It has a large group of enthusiastic young people. It has the financial resources to accomplish any work in which the people are united. But it has been called a “sleeping giant,” both by outsiders and by some members of the church, who feel that the Church is not fulfilling its potential for the cause of Christ. In preparation for the seminar, each of the 500 families in the church shall be asked to fill out a survey questionnaire (see Appendix E). It consists of three major sections: (1) concerning individual conversion and spiritual life; (2) concerning the family; and (3) concerning the church; This should be finished at least a month before the seminar begins in order to have adequate time to tabulate and analyze the data gained from the survey. The seminar can then use the information from the survey to focus attention on the following questions: (1) Is it God’s will for the Chinese Church in Thailand to grow? (2) How do churches grow?

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(3) How has the church grown in Thailand? ! (4) How do Chinese become Christians? (5) What are the present strengths and weaknesses of the Sapah Luang Church? (6) What opportunities do we have in Bangkok? (7) What goals should be set for growth? (See Appendix F). A map of the city should be obtained and the residence of each family plotted on the map. If possible, areas of major concentrations of Chinese should also be plotted on the map. Slum areas, industrial areas, business centers, new housing developments, and suburban residential areas should all be marked. Main bus lines and transportation routes should be indicated too, a s this influences the decision a s to where a church meeting center should be located. Information regarding the past history of the church, with graphs showing the increase of membership and the rate of growth should be drawn. Graphs showing comparative growth of Thai and Chinese churches, and of city and country churches, should be prepared. These diagnostic tools—survey questionnaire, map, and graphs of growth—will ail help people to see both where they are and where they should go. Hopefully, at the close of the seminar, the officers and members of the church will be motivated to make definite plans for church growth by expansion (increasing the membership of the central church) and by extension (establishing branch congregations in different sections of the city). (Note: The involvement of different people in doing the surveys, making the map, and drawing the graphs will do a great deal to create interest in the seminar and contribute to*its success.) ‘ 1

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The second seminar, along the same lines and with the same preparation, should be held at the Maitrichit Baptist Church. Later seminars could be held in some of the larger churches in the provincial centers—Chiangmai, Haadyai, Yala, Cholburi, etc.

II. ORGANIZE A CHURCH-PLANTING TEAM To Plant New Churches The Seventh District should appoint a committee with spe-, cific responsibility for making a survey a s to the areas of Bangkok where new churches should be established. This survey would include the number of Christian families in a given area, their church affiliation, their .home language, and whether or not they could be brought together into a harmonious new fellowship a s a nucleus for a new church in that area. The survey should also include the total number of Chinese in the area, their economic and social characteristics, and their degree of receptivity to the Christian message. '' ' If it is desirable to plant a new church in the area, two possibilities should be considered: (1) a house church, or (2) the establishment of facilities for public worship, Christian education, youth activities, Christian fellowship, and service to the people , of the community in the name of Christ,.This might be by renting a building, o r it might be- by purchase. of land and construction of facilities according to a. good plan. In the past, several attempts have been made,to do evangelistic work through the use of store-front buildings, but they have not produced good results. The emphasis was on preaching with the hope of. attracting people walking by, causing them to stop and listen. Often the Christians who came to participate were from other areas and did not know anyone in the area where the mission was located. When they came to help in

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evangelism, their part was to distribute tracts to people passing by, to help with music, or to preach. If there were Christians in the area, they felt quite conspicuous meeting in the room where the whole front door opened onto the sidewalk. They did not feel that there was adequate spiritual’ nurture either for themselves or for the members of their family, and preferred to attend a church that had a more adequate program. In addition, noise from the street traffic made it difficult for both speaker and listeners to communicate. In short, this approach in these facilities, was not effective for either the Christians who should have been the nucleus to start a new church, nor for non-Christians who were to be reached with the Gospel. In urban society there are other factors to consider than just geographical location. People are drawn together more by mutual interests and friendships, than by proximity. So house churches might also be established for different linguistic groups (Hokkien, Hakka, Mandarin, Hainanese), for people from the same rural area who have moved to Bangkok, and for other homogeneous units of the population, such a s extended families and factory workers. Special attention should be given to coordinating the efforts of the central church and the many house churches related to it. Perhaps something can be learned from the Brazil for Christ Church in Sao Paulo, Brazil. Their big meetings are on Thursday and Saturday when 5,000 crowd into the central cathedral. On Sunday the attendance drops to something like one hundred because so many members are in their growing daughter churches scattered throughout the city (Wagner 1971:188). In Bangkok where Christians are such a small minority of the population, meetings of larger numbers at a central church give a spiritual and psychological boost to people. At the same time Christians need to be at work in smaller groups for the winning of non-Christians to Christ. To Develop Techniques for Family Evangelism. A. L. Tuggy has provided a good definition of family evangelism. He says, “Family evangelism i s that strategy of

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evangelization which specifically aims at winning whole families to Christ and his Church as they respond to -the Gospel through mutually interdependent decisions” (1974:17). The- Bible shows us that the family i s established by God, and i s the focal point of His redemptive activity. Noah and his family were saved from the flood (Gen. 7:13). The passover was celebrated by families (Exod. 12:3-4,. 21-23). Joshua, as representative head of his family, pledged allegiance to God, saying, “As for me and* my house, we will serve the Lord” (Josh. 24:15). In the New Testament we have' accounts of the conversion and baptism of people by families and households, including Cornelius (Acts 10:7, 24), Lydia (Acts 16:15), the Philippian jailer (Acts 16:31-34), Crispus (Acts 18:8), and Stephanus (I Cor. 1:16). The New Testament church was not built up of so many individual Christians but of basic social units, of organic wholes, which were the fundamental cells of society namely families. We must note that this conversion of' larger and “ smaller groups ‘in Acts, in which the family stands oiit prominently, was wholly carried on by the Holy Spirit’(Boer 1961: 166). The history of God’s chosen people, first the Jews and later the Christian believers, shows how important the unity of the family i s for the stability of society, for the transmission of the truth from one generation to another, and- for the attracting of other people to God. This approach i s also culturally relevant in winning Chinese to Christ. Where the issue of religion is concerned, it is the family that decides. In Chinese society it i s the family relationships that bind the family together. It i s regarded as a great sin for parents to neglect their children, for children to be disrespectful toward parents, for husbands and wives to get a divorce, or for brothers and sisters not to be harmonious and mutually supportive. A Chinese will more likelyhave a tender conscience and a sense of guilt for failures in these areas than for other acts of wrong-doing.

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A young person who becomes a Christian against the wishes of his parents i s regarded as a traitor to the family and as doing a great wrong in breaking the family unity. In this situation, Christianity i s seen as a great evil. But where the gospel can preserve and strengthen family units, it will be seen as a great good. Chua Wee Hian, a prominent evangelical student leader in Southeast Asia, found that evangelism among Chinese students could not be separated from the home. He said, “In a Chinese church where I was the associate pastor, we discovered that most of the conversions (about’ 80 to 100 per year) took place in the home” (Chua 1971:29). The Rev. Martin Hsu, founder of the Tunghwa Church, Keelung, Taiwan, lists some ofthe methods he has used in establishing five new congregations: (1) Seek out families in need, trouble, or illness. Counsel with them and pray for them. (2) Seek out the oldest, most authoritative figure in the family and first preach the Gospel to him. t

(3) Seek out the most superstitious people, a s their religious zeal i s a good indication of their devotion. They make the best Christians. Those who believe nothing before becoming Christians usually make lukewarm Christians afterwards. (4) Do not emphasize youth work. Youth rarely manage to lead their parents to the Lord. Their conversions often result in rejection or persecution by their parents, thereby closing the door to future contacts with the parents. (5) Thoroughly instruct each adult on his or her responsibility to lead the children to the Lord (and not the other way around). If they feel unqualified to witness to their children, have them bring the children to the church for the pastor to instruct.

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(6) Let the decision to follow Christ be a family decision. Do not deliberately obstruct the function of family connections, “the bridges of God,” by ignoring the possibility of the majority to trust in the Lord. (7) No household can receive baptism without first, in their own home, publicly destroying all household idols (Swanson 1971: 13-14). Visitation teams should be formed and trained for family evangelism. New homes to visit may be relatives of church members, parents of children enrolled in the church schools, parents of young people in English classes, contacts made with patients in the hospital, neighbors and friends of church members, etc. Bible study materials should be prepared for families to use in studying Christianity first hand in order to make an intelligent decision regarding acceptance or rejection. Opportunities should be sought in the homes to present the Gospel to the family a s a whole. The head of the family, e s pecially, should be present. The Christian worker can prepare a series of Bible studies to present to a family that has shown an interest in the Gospel. In some cases, it might be possible to start a house church with a few families in one neighborhood who hear the Gospel and turn to Christ at the same time. To Promote Factory Evangelism The success of the Lim family in winning their factory workers to Christ and establishing a new church among them points to another possibility for effective work. Several other members of the Sapan Luang Church also own factories that employ from 40 to 200 workers. The church-planting team should convene these factory owners to look for further opportunities along this line. Some of the newly-converted laborers could be part of the team, to share their spiritual experiences with Christ with other non-Christian factory workers. Young

109 people from the: church, as well as a fulltime specialist in this field, could also be part of the team. Some of the workers have migrated to Bangkok from rural areas. The team should seek opportunities to join with the worker in witnessing to his relatives and friends in his original home. With God’s blessing, this could result in the formation -of some new rural churches too. To Devise Training Programs In order for these various aspects of urban evangelization to be carried out, it will be necessary for the team to devise training opportunities for the leaders of the house churches, for the members of the family visitation teams, and for the people who plan to participate in factory evangelism. The faculty of the Bangkok Institute of Theology and the pastors of the churches should plan for evening adult classes that will help people to develop skills in the type of work they volunteer to do. As the work develops in each area, it may be necessary to engage staff workers to assist the lay leaders.

III. ESTABLISH "THE PIONEER MISSION” FOR CROSS-CULTURAL EVANGELISM In view of the many different peoples and cultures in Thailand, it is extremely important that the Chinese churches establish a para-church mission to participate in the task of evangelization. Some of the peoples that might be considered a s fields of work include the 5,000 Yunnanese in north Thailand, the 200,000 Karens in northwest Thailand, and the northern Thai in Chiangmai and Chiangrai provinces. The Mandarin-speaking Yunnanese live in scattered communities in north Thailand. They have fled to Thailand because of the Communists, and have been moved from place to place by the Thai government. Initial contacts by Chinese pastors show them to be fairly receptive to the Gospel.

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There is a rapidly growing church among the Karens. There has been a great people movement among the Karens of Burma, and there i s no reason that there should not be the same type of conversion of the Karens in Thailand. i

The northern Thai, or Lao, are basically animists, with a thin veneer of Buddhism. Their Buddhism has not helped them to overcome fear of the spirits around them. Sixty percent of all the Christians in Thailand are found in these two provinces. In the past three years, there has been a 35% increase in the number of Christians among these people, showing that they too are responsive to the Gospel now. Another group of people that should be considered are the refugees that have recently fled to Thailand to escape from the Communist take-over of Vietnam and Cambodia. They have experienced suffering, collapse of previously-held value systems, and are uncertain of the future. They are trying to begin a new life in a strange country. They are in heed of friends in Thailand who will give them loving assistance in finding a place to live and work to support their families. Above .all, they need the jnner spiritual renewal that can only come from knowing Jesus Christ. Procedure

for Founding the Mission

The proposal to found “The Pioneer Mission” should be presented to the Seventh District by three highly respected Chinese laymen. Their proposal will include the nomination of seven people to form a Mission Board. Before their names are presented, they must understand the purpose of the Mission and express their willingness to serve as Board members. Their first term of service will run for three years. One of the responsibilities of the Board will be the formation of “Pioneer Mission Societies” in each of the churches. These societies will be made up of church members who voluntarily dedicate themselves to participation in the work of the Mission. After the Board’s first term of three years, the subsequent Board members will be chosen by the members of the “Pioneer Mission Societies.”

111 The Mission Board, at its first meeting, will elect officers from among their seven members. These officers would include a president, vice-president, secretary, treasurer, and vicetreasurer. i ’■ The Board should appoint a survey team of two or three (not necessarily members of the Board) to make a survey of the different areas where the Mission might begin work. I The Board should also appoint a committee to promote the- organization of the “Pioneer Mission Societies” in each church. The purpose of these societies i s to carry out missionary education in the church, encourage prayer support for the Mission’s work, and raise money for the work of the Mission. Each local society should have its own officers and committees to carry out its work. The opportunities, the need for personnel, and the need for funds would be presented to these societies for prayer and for action. As the need arises, the Board should engage staff people to take responsibility for the planning and prosecution of various aspects of the work. Financing the Mission t

To get the Mission started at the beginning, the Seventh District should grant 20,000 Baht ($1,000) from its fund for new work. Following the founding of the Mission, financial support will come from the voluntary contributions of individuals and from funds raised by the different societies. Reports concerning finances will be made annually to all the societies, to the District, to the local churches, and to the contributing individuals. Consideration should be given to the holding of missionary conventions in each church, praying that God will motivate people to give themselves and their resources for the evangelization of all peoples. ,

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Various Policy Matters If there arealready churches in the area of work, the Mission should plan its work in consultation with them, in order to avoid misunderstanding and conflict, to gain their backing for new church planting, and to relate the new churches established to the existing church organization. Ail missionaries engaged by the Mission would be entitled to participation in the Seventh District’s pension plan, provident fund, hospital and medical insurance, and children’s education benefits, on the same basis a s other Seventh District-pastors and their families. The Mission and missionary personnel should give special attention to the problems and methods of cross-cultural communication. Consideration should be given to the possibilities of sending teams of missionaries, not just an individual, to begin new work (following the example of the apostolic teams in the New Testament). Structures and policies should be kept flexible so as to be able to meet changing conditions and new opportunities.

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13 PREPARATION FOR POLITICAL CHANGE POLITICAL CHANGE IN THAILAND This was written in the spring of 1975, just at the time when great political changes were taking place in Thailand’s nearest neighbors of Cambodia, Laos, and Vietnam. The Khmer Rouge army, with the help of North Vietnam and Red China, overthrew the Lon Nol government in Cambodia. The Viet Cong, also with the help of North Vietnam, Red China, and Russia, gained a military victory over all of South Vietnam, and established a Communist government there. Thailand i s now faced with a new political situation; with Communist-controlled countries right on her borders. Thailand has often been described politically as being like a bamboo swaying with the wind. For the past 30 years the governments of Thailand have been strongly anti-Communist and pro-United States. Thai people felt threatened by the economic power of the Chinese within their country, and by the size and power of the People’s Republic of China to the north of them. They fear a kind of Chinese imperialism that will destroy their autonomy and freedom. Thailand sent troops to South Vietnam (at American expense) to fight against the North Vietnamese. They also provided air bases from which the United States bombed North Vietnam. Now there is the possibility that Hanoi will try to take revenge

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by sending men and supplies to aid the guerrilla units fighting against the government in northeast Thailand. In fact, many of those guerrilla leaders were trained in North Vietnam. Radio Peking announced in 1965 that Thailand was next on the list for liberation. At the same time, the United States i s seeking to phase out military personnel and air bases in Thailand. They were originally established to aid the war effort in South Vietnam. Now that South Vietnam has fallen, they have lost their reason for being there. Furthermore, it is very unlikely that the U.S. will commit troops to another Asian war. So the Thai realize that they cannot count on the U.S. to give them much aid in repelling the advance of the Reds. The Communist armies of Cambodia and Vietnam have tasted the sweet joys of victory and would like to get revenge on Thailand because of her a s s i s tance to the U.S. bombing. So the psychological advantage i s on the side of the Communist forces, and they are smart enough to take advantage of it. This leads us to consider the possibility of Thailand’s becoming a Communist state within the next few years. What strategy should the Christian Church use to prepare for existence -in such a whole new political climate?

OPPORTUNITY FOR EVANGELISM First of all, in this changing political situation, Christians must have the spiritual perception to see that the changes, the uncertainty of the future, the dangers to life and property, the prospect of losing all one’s possessions, and the suffering that comes in the struggle for military and political control, all contribute to making people receptive to the Gospel of Christ. Christ offers what they need—peace of heart when all around is changing. Christian workers, and especially missionaries, should not equate pessimism over a worsening (from their point of view) political situation and lack of opportunity to preach the Word of God to people. It is just at this time, when

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life- values are crumbling, and when there i s a loss of the material things for which people have worked and saved all their lives, that there i s a willingness to hear the Gospel and consider the claims of Christ. A good example may be found in the work of the Christian and Missionary Alliance in Cambodia. From 1922 to 1970 they were able to establish only one struggling Khmer congregation in Phnom Penh. But in the years between 1970 and 1975, several thousand Cambodians turned to Christ, so that in February 1975 there were 27 churches in Phnom Penh. Many of the new Christians were refugees from the fighting area, but there were also converts from all walks of life, including the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court. For the first time in Cambodian history, people turned to Christ in large numbers. This receptivity was a direct result of the war, refugee conditions, and the uncertainty of life. People in Thailand may also turn more receptive to the Gospel in the next few years if political stability continues to deteriorate. The season for- a spiritual harvest i s here. * Good strategy calls for concentrating reapers where the harvest i s ripe. So missions should redouble their evangelism efforts in the immediate future-j-not in the hope of delaying the Communi st takeover— but because people need Chri st right at thi s time. They need Him because of their present suffering. They need Him more .because life here i s short and death i s imminent. Only Christ has the words of eternal life. Only Christ has been victorious over death. Only in Him can people enjoy the heavenly home of glory and splendor. > In this situation, ministering to people should be central to all effort, with little emphasis on building institutions. The institutions are certain to be destroyed or taken over by the Communists. What people need i s the Word of God to help them to see God’s judgment on them and their nation. They need to see Christ as their only Savior. They need to know that He accepts all who turn to Him. They need to experience the new

116

life in Christ, His power to keep and protect them in danger, His willingness to hear and answer prayer, and above all, His victory over death and preparation of a heavenly home for His people. To accomplish this, the Word of God must be gotten into the hands of all who can read. Cassette tapes can be used to help the illiterate. People must be encouraged to memorize the Word of God as much as possible, so that they will have it in their hearts after their Bibles are taken from them. New Christians, as well as older Christians, must be gotten together in small groups for Bible study, prayer, and sharing for mutual encouragement. Small groups allow for the finding and development of spiritual gifts. They help Christians to look to each other for spiritual help, and not just to the pastor or missionary. People when they existence. of God for

should 'be taught ways of maintaining spiritual life are travelling and when they are living an unsettled They need to know how to draw upon the resources persecution, jail, and brain-washing.

It should not be forgotten that when the Communists take over, they will attempt to destroy the institutional church. When they cannot destroy it, they will attempt to control it and bend it to their purposes. Therefore, Christians must know how to maintain their spiritual life, fellowship, and witness without the support of the institutional church.

PREPARATION FOR SURVIVAL In looking at the church in the East European Communist countries, we can see that it continues to exist in two forms. One form i s the government-controlled church organization that i s allowed to continue as long as it supports the government. The second form is the underground church, meeting secretly, and seeking ways to convert people and strengthen believers in secret.

117

The church in Thailand should prepare for both kinds of continued existence. I do not have any definite plans to accomplish this, but I think the following things are extremely important: (1) The

memorization of the Bible by all Christians.

(2) Experience in house churches and small group fellowships. (3) Help as many Christians a s possible to develop awareness of their spiritual gifts and experience in using them for ministry to others. (4) Faith that God i s in control of the affairs of men and nations, and that He is working in all events according to His purpose. The final outcome will be the complete establishment of His Kingdom and the eternal welfare of all His people.

POLITICAL CHANGE IN CHINA Another political change taking place in the spring of 1975 was the ascendancy of Chou En-Lai in the People’s Republic of China. This shows movement toward moderation in the prosecution of revolutionary goals, willingness to supply more consumer goods to ease the hardship of the people, and a less militant stance in foreign relations. The Revised Constitution adopted by the Communist Party in China in January 1975 expanded the section on “Freedom of Religious Belief,” to read, “The citizens enjoy freedom of speech, assembly, association...and enjoy freedom to believe in religion and freedom not to believe in religion and propagate atheism.” Note that freedom to propagate atheism i s specifically included, while nothing i s said about freedom to propagate religious beliefs. There i s freedom for one to believe in religion, but no freedom to spread those beliefs to others.

118

Since President Nixon’s visit to Peking in 1972, China has allowed people of many nations to visit their country. During these past few years, overseas Chinese have also been allowed to visit their relatives, and increasing numbers of them are doing it. The Hongkong government reports that 200,000 people cross the border to and from People’s China every year. This leads us to ask the question, what strategy, if any, should the overseas Chinese churches adopt to assist Chinese Christians who visit mainland China to be effective evangelists? In answering this question, it might clarify our thinking to consider two different sets of circumstances in which people could go to China. The first is under present circumstances or some modification of them. The second (very unlikely in the near future) i s the establishment of a new political system allowing for unrestricted freedom of religious belief and activity. In order to be as realistic as possible, I am confining my suggestions as to what might be attempted under present circumstances or a moderation of them under a more lenient government policy. (1) A Chinese Christian going to China from overseas must be prepared to make a thorough study of the changes fostered by 25 years of Communist indoctrination and control, different style of life and habits of modern China, the present-day cultural emphases, and prayerfully seek ways to present Christ to people within the culture as it now exists. One of the “China-watchers” in Hongkong has said, “An understanding of where China has been, where the revolution i s now, and where it might be heading, i s absolutely essential for the person who hopes to share his faith in some meaningful way with the Chinese people” (Larson 1974:139). It would be a mistake for a Chinese Christian who has lived abroad for 30 years or more to assume that people in China still think as they did when he was there before. He needs to realize that 30 years abroad has changed him in many ways too, and he will experience “reverse culture shock” in returning to the

119 place of his childhood (Tippett 1973:478). Such a Christian would probably be 50 to 70 years old now. Would his age be a factor in his ability to understand the new situation in China? If it were a person 20 to 40 years of age who was returning, his outlook would be even more influenced by his experience abroad, as his formative years were greatly influenced by his foreign environment. In a sense, Communism is a Christian heresy. That is, there are elements in it that are based on Christian faith, but they have been distorted and reinterpreted. “Communism was a secularized version of the Christian understanding of history” (Latourette 1953: 1353).- One of these is the oft- repeated slogan, “Serve the people” (Maclnnis 1974:38). Another i s the emphasis on creating, a new man, but it. is by human effort, and not by the regeneration of the Holy Spirit. Self-criticism and confession of faults i s another practice taken from Christianity (Church and Society 1957:34). How can these elements of Communist theory and practice be usedas a common frame of reference for the communication of the Gospel, and be placed again in their rightful Christian context? For instance, suppose that several Christians from Bangkok were planning, to visit relatives in Swatow. Their trips; would not all be at -the same time; and they, would be travelling as individuals and not as a group. Before their visits, they could get together for planning, discussion, and prayer.for God’s guidance and blessing, on their plans to- witness for Christ. Those who went first could share their experience with the others who were planning to go. They could introduce Christian contacts in Swatow to the new people going info China. The methods of such witness would have to be worked out together by those attempting to do it, as -an American missionary wouldn’t have much from his experience to help them. But with the guidance and help-of the Holy Spirit, they could learn.to become effective evangelists even in that difficult sitution. (2) Under present circumstances, the visits of overseas Chinese Christians to China would probably be for only one

120

or two months at a time. What he could do in that amount of time1 i s limited. Everything will depend on the Christian converts there, a s they are familiar with the system and know how to go about doing things in that situation. Therefore, it i s important- for the Christian to understand the dynamics of culture change. He must see himself as an advocate who presents Christ to a few persons or families. Those persons and families then will become the innovators in their society, introducing Christ in the social 'relationships as they exist, now in that society, organizing Christian groups in a way that environment allows, and making Christ culturally relevant. (3) Ways should be found to get' Chinese Bibles into the hands of new -converts and people ’showing an interest in.the Christian message. Chinese New Testaments printed in the simplified characters are available in Manila and Hongkong, and are- -more suited for people in China today than the ‘older Mandarin Bible. Thought should also be'given to a new translation of the Bible into modern Chinese idiom a s used in People’s China. • :

»

V

* *

•

I

Special literature could be prepared on the life of Karl Marx, showing how many of his- ideas came from the Bible and from Christian’ institutions of his dayS Small booklets could' be published showing thatthe major emphases of the-Communists are found in the Bible. Perhaps the-Communist-official document's could be quoted; and then compared with quotations from the "Bible—showing the- origin of these ideas’jin the Word of God. • • ’ Information about Gospel radio broadcasts should also, be disseminated' through’ underground channels-, so that more would know how to hear God’s Word through that medium. t

r

1

j *

♦

M

(4) i Overseas Chinese come from the southeastern coast of China, and their first witness would’ be in that area. How could the Gospel be spread from there northward and westward through the rest of the country? If Bibles were taken . into ‘these coastal cities, i s ; there any- underground route of distributing

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them to Christians in other areas where the overseas Chinese have no relatives? (5) All of these efforts for Chinese Christians to witness for Christ in China must be strongly supported by the prayers and concern of the overseas Chinese churches.

122

CONCLUSION The study of the Chinese community and the Chinese churches in Thailand i s still' not complete. This i s only the beginning of what we needto know inorder to present the gospel of Jesus Christ to Chinese in a relevant and life-changing way. I encourage Chinese Christians to correct the mistakes, and to add new insights from their; understanding of the situation in Thailand. I plead for the world Christian community to pray for the

people of Thailand, and especially for a spiritual renewal of the Christians. Social and political changes are shaking the foundations of both Thai and Chinese cultures. We do not yet see the shape of the new society, but we pray that God will be at work in the process of change, and that people living in Thailand will find their deepest needs fulfilled in knowing Christ. Pray that God will raise up spirit-filled leaders in the Chinese churches to present Christ to the millions still without Him. Pray that the churches will be prepared to use new m e thods and new approaches in winning people to Christ. Some practices that have been imported from the West need to be discarded and new indigenous forms adopted that will enable the Chinese Christians to mobilize for a culturally relevant witness in their community. Let us study, pray, and work in the confidence that “the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord, a s the waters cover the sea.” (Habakkuk 2:14)

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APPENDICES

Appendix A

Membership Thailand

Figures, Church of Christ in

Appendix B

Membership Figures, Seventh District, CCT

Appendix C

Membership Additions, Sapan Luang Church

Appendix D

Chinese Pastors of Sathom and Sapan Luang Churches

Appendix E

Survey Questionnaire Forms

Appendix F

Lecture Outlines for a “Church Growth Seminar”

124

APPENDIX A Membership Figures, Church of Christ in Thailand

Year

Members

Year

1912 1915 1920 1925 1930 1935 1940 1945 1950 1955 1956 1957 1959

6,084 7,646 8,038 8,289 8,584 9,124 9,712 10,000 14,000 15,816 17,000 17,000 18,251

1960 1962 1963 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973

-

Members 17,634 18,275 18,275 20,000 22,014 20,068 21,199 19,705 21,322 22,210 24,526 26,691

125

APPENDIX B Membership Figures, Seventh District, CCT From Minutes of the Annual Meeting Year 1948 1951 1952 1953 1954 1957 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974

Sapan Luang 374 491 491 569 593 691 728 738 750 781 842 858 864 882 903 944 950 976 1027 1080 1147 1206

All Other Churches

‘

‘

515 884 884 531 461 600 658 694 730 758 759 778 781 800 747 736 773 803 809 713 736 776

Total 889 1375 1375 1100 1054 1291 1386 1432 1480 1539 1601 1636 1645 1682 1650 1680 1723 1779 1836 1793 1883 1982

126 APPENDIX C Sapan Luang Church Membership Additions 1948-1973

Transfer

Total

Year

Adult Baptisms

1948 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973

21 41 11 37 25 29 28 29 43 22 25 21 6 28 12 19 19 21 20 5 17 15 24 16 46

. 12 16 8 27 17 2 10 12 11 8 6 5 4 9 15 9 23 14 14 5 3 5 11 29 26

3 ■1-6

4 2 1 17 9 5 2 12 4 6 13 7 10 3 9 7 4 23 17

36 73 19 68 45 31 42 43 55 47 40 31 12 49 31 34 55 42 44 13 29 27 39 68 89

Totals

596

314

188

1098

Confirmations

28.6% 54.3% (Taken from S e s s i o n Records)

%

4 3

78.1%

100%

APPENDIX

D

Chinese Pastors of Sathorn Church Rev. Wong Lun Po Mr. Wong Tsick Shang Rev. Yip King Shang Rev. Lau Tin Wah Mr. Ma Seng Chuen Miss Lei Sui Oi Rev. Hsu Sung Kwang Rev. Tsai Weng Shang Miss Wong Yuk Fong

Chinese Pastors

1922-1925 1926-1930 1931-1933 1934-1940 1940-1946 1947-1975 1951-1953 1956 1971-

of Sapan Luang Church

Mr. Koo Tuang Ngee 1917-1918 1 Rev. Lo Chee Seng 1918-1921 1 Rev. Ng Siu Ting 1921-1926 Mr. Tang Tzu Dee 1924-1926 Rev. Tang Zui Hee 1926-1930 Rev. Tsang Hui Ming 1931-35, 1947-48 Mr. Tang Mou Liam 1934-1935 Mr. Chee Yau Hwa 1935-1937 Rev. Heng Teck Im * 1938-1947 Miss Mary Ang 1945-47, 1949 55 Rev. Lee Ngiap Siu 1948-1960 Mr. Ng Cheng Ziang 1954-1959 Rev. Philip Lee 1956-57, 1960-62 1961-1963 Miss Tang Swee Hia Rev. Chew Tong Hao 1962-1974 1965-1968 Miss Ruth Fang Mr. Ng Bou Sia 1968Rev. Miss Lao Yuk Kia 1972-

128 APPENDIX

E

Survey Questionnaire for Individual Christian History 1. Where were you born? place

China

Thailand

Other

2. If you were not born in Thailand, at what age did you come to Thailand? age 1-10 age 11-20 age 21-30 age 31-40 age 41-50 over age 50 3. How old are you now? 4.

Male

Female

5. Please circle all the people in your family who are or were Christians. great-grandfather grandfather father son great-grandmother grandmother mother daughter grandson granddaughter 6. How old were you when you became a Christian? . at birth age 1-10 age 11-20 age 21-30 age 31-40 age 41-50 age 51-60 over 60 7. Have you been baptized?

Yes

No

8 . Who has influenced you most in your decision to be a Christian? Indicate by 1 or 2, the two most influential from the following list. Chinese pastor or preacher Thai pastor or preacher Western pastor or preacher Other pastor or preacher Your father Your mother

129

A friend A neighbor Your employer A teacher at school A close relative Someone else Who

Who

9. What teaching in the Bible appeals to you the most? List two or three.

3. 10. What circumstances in life ' caused you to seek Christ? Indicate by 1 and 2 the most important. a sense of sin financial problems family trouble thinking about death sickness dissatisfied with life attending Christian school fear of evil spirits something else. Please state 11. Method that God used to help you make your decision. Reading a Gospel tract or book Listening to Christian radio broadcast Reading the Bible Attending Christian school Being in a Christian hospital Attending a preaching service: * in home at church Attending a Bible class Some other way. Please state

130 12. Have you brought any of your relatives or friends to Christ since you became a Christian? No

Yes

What relationship to you? How many?

13. Do you feel it i s difficult to bring your relatives to Christ? No

Yes

Why?

14. Can you read Chinese: No Yes Can you read Thai? No Yes Can you read English? No Yes

Write Chinese? No Yes Write Thai? No Yes Write English? No Yes

15. Which language do you prefer to use in conversation? Use 1 and 2 to indicate your first two choices. Thai Hainan Hokchiu

Teochiu Cantonese Other

Hokkien Hakka Mandarin

16. What do you feel are the greatest benefits you receive because of your Christian faith? 1. 2. 3.

131

A Family Survey 1. Members of your family now living together.

Family Member Sex

Believes, not Does not Age Baptized? baptized believe

1.

4. 5. 6.

8.

10. 2. What languages do you use most in your family? Use 1 and 2 to show two most important ones. Thai Hokchiu Hainan

Teochiu Cantonese Other

Hakka Hokkien Mandarin

3. How many years has your family lived in Thailand?

132

A Church Survey 1. What do you regard Church?

a s the strengths of the Sapan Luang

1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 2. What do you regard

a s the weaknesses of the church?

1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 3. What changes do you suggest in order to make a better church? 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.

133 4.

What new work do you feel the church should plan to do? 1. ft 2. 3 .>

134 !•

1

'

,

APPENDIX

k

F

SEVEN LECTURES FOR A “CHURCH GROWTH SEMINAR” This series of lectures i s planned for presentation at a “Church Growth Seminar” for the staff, officers, volunteer workers, and interested members .of the Sapan Luang Chinese .. Church, Bangkok, Thailand. One month before the seminar begins, a survey questionnaire will be distributed to all the families in the church. It has three sections: (1) concerning individual conversion and spiritual life; (2) concerning the family; and (3) concerning the church. The data from the survey will be used in the lectures. For Lecture Five a map of the city will be prepared showing the location of the church members. The purpose of these lectures i s to motivate the officers and members of the church to make definite plans for church growth by expansion (increasing membership of the central church) and extension (establishing branch congregations in different areas of the city).

135 LECTURE ONE

Is It God’s Will for the Chinese Church in Thailand to Grow? I.

Light from the Word of God A. I Timothy 2:1-7, II Peter 3:9, II Cor. 4: 13-18 1 . God desires the salvation of all men, including the Chinese in Thailand. 2. God is not willing that any should perish. 3. As more and more people experience the saving grace bf Christ, they will be filled with joy, and God will be glorified. B. So we may conclude that finding the lost Chinese and bringing them into the Father’s house i s God’s will for us a s individuals and as a church.

II. Some Objections to Overcome A. Some missionaries and other church leaders say that the Chinese should not have separate churches, but that they should be merged into the Thai churches. 1. “People like to become Christians without crossing racial, linguistic, or class barriers.” 2 . Church growth studies show that the Gospel spreads more rapidly in homogeneous units. B. The Yellow Bridge Church i s already big enough; we don’t need to grow anymore. 1 . How many Chinese are there in Bangkok? I s God satisfied to save just the existing Christians?

136 2 . We ought to .be establishing new churches in new areas of the city, among the homogeneous units like students, laborers, new neighborhoods, etc. There should be fifty churches .like the Sapan Luang Church. C. Chinese

are too difficult to convert.

1 . Perhaps we have used the wrong approach in the past— too individualistic. We ought to change to family evangelism. 2 . Perhaps non-Christians regard the church as too foreign, and we ought to make some changes so that newcomers feel more at home. III. What God Wills, is Our Responsibility This must be our first priority. to it.

to do.

Let us dedicate

‘i

ourselves

137

LECTURE TWO

How Do Churches Grow? I.

Light from the Word of God A. Matthew 16:18-19, The Church i s Christ’s, based on confession of. Him as Lord. Christ Himself will build His Church. Christ’s Church will be victorious. B. Acts 2:37-42, 1 Cor. 14:12 The Holy Spirit i s given to convert people, regenerate them, and baptize them into Christ’s body. The Holy Spirit i s given to us to make our work for Him effective. C . Eph. 4:11-16 The Church grows a s all the saints are equipped for ministry. The church grows as we are vitally united to Christ and to each other. The church grows through the love of people in it.

II. Two Ways of Converting People to Christ A. The extraction! st method of conversion 1. One-by-one, usually young people taken out of their families and natural social groupings. (Thai churches are like this, and weak in family units.) This i s the result ofthe school approach. 2. These Christians are unable to lead their relatives to Christ, because they are regarded a s traitors to their family. 3. These churches grow very slowly, if at all.

138

4. This type of church i s seen to be foreign in nature. B. People movement method of conversion 1. Based on family, kinship groups, and homogeneous units in society. 2 . Rapidly growing. 3. Indigenous in organization, leadership, and practices. III. Case Studies of Asian Church Growth A. Taiwan

b

B. Korea C. Hongkong D. Indonesia

’

139 LECTURE THREE

How Has the Church Grown in Thailand? I.

Light from the Word of God A. Matthew 13:1-9, 18-23, The Sower and the Seed The Chinese have been a good soil for the Gospel.

II.

Overall Picture

of Total

Church

Growth in Thailand

A. By historical periods, with graphic illustration. 1 . First

converts

to Christ were Chinese.

2 . 1920-1945, A time of little growth. 3. 1945-1970, growth.

Keeping pace

with population

4 . 1970-1974, “Double the Church” Movement. III. The Development of the Chinese Churches A. By Presbyterian District.

Mission, resulting in the Seventh

B. By Chinese Baptists, resulting in the Twelfth District. C. Others All with graphs and charts to show comparative growth, and maps to show locations. IV. A Study of the A. 1896-1946, revival.

Growth

of the Yellow Bridge Church

beginnings, setbacks, divisions, and

140 B. 1946-1974, analysis of growth 1 . Transfer growth, mainly from China. 2. Biological growth— good, but not good enough. ,

3 . Conversion growth— praise God for His saving power. 4. Causes

for growth or non-growth.

141

LECTURE FOUR

How Do Chinese Become Christians? I.

Light from the Word of God A. I Thess. 1:2-10 1. Loved by God, chosen by God. 2. Lives changed by the Gospel, turned from idols to serve the living and true God. 3. The Word sounded forth from you.

IL Important Factors

in the Conversion of Chinese

Here I plan to present the results of the survey questionnaire. Actual points to emphasize will come out of the answers on the questionnaire. I personally believe some of the answers will indicate the following factors: A. Family and clan relationships. B. Evangelistic meetings with well-known Chinese preachers, such as Dr. John Sung, Dr. Andrew Gih, Dr. Timothy Dzao, Elder Wu Yung, Mr. Stephen Tong, and others. C. Sickness and need for healing. D. Needed comfort in suffering. E. Heard the Gospel in Christian Schools. F. Felt needs, guilt, weakness, hopelessness, etc.

142 HI. What are some of the things that hinder Chinese from becoming Christians? A. Social factors, family solidarity, ancestor worship? B. Economic factors? C. Psychological factors, pride, national loyalty? D. Communist opposition? IV. How should we go about winning more Chinese to Christ? Suggestions will come out of the general discussion following the presentation.

143

LECTURE FIVE

What are the Present

I.

Strengths and Weaknesses Luang Church?

of the Sapan

Light from the Word of God A. Rev. 2-3, Messages to the Churches: Praise and Rebuke B. As the Living Lord looks at this church, what does He see to commend? What does He see that needs to change? '

II. Strengths (The following points to be revised according received on the questionnaire.)

to data

J

A. Financial strength—this church has the money to do anything it wants to do, if it i s united. B. Strong families (Map of location throughout the city) C. Many capable men and women Well educated, capable, musical, good linguists, etc. ' D. Large group of enthusiastic young people. E. Two day schools 1 . Primary school with 1,780 students. 2. Secondary school with 350 students. 3. How many have been baptized schools?

from

the

144

4, Can we reach the families of the students? 5, Good reputation in the community. Weaknesses

III.

(The following points will be revised according to data gotten from the questionnaire.) A. Many young people from Christian families are lost to the church—we are not conserving all of the second and third generation Christians. B. Too much fighting among ourselves. C . Too little concern for winning the lost to Christ. »

D. Too little prayer and Bible study.

IV. Christ's rebukes call us to humble repentance. His goodnesses call us to grateful rededication.

145

LECTURE S I X

What Opportunities I.

Do We Have in Bangkok?

Light from the Word of God A. Jonah, 1. 2. 3.

chapters 1-3 The city God’s redeeming activity God’s use of a man

II. Let us study Bangkok and its immediate environs A. What kinds of people are in Bangkok? Are the Chinese concentrated in any special area? What languages are spoken? Approximately how many people speak each language? What opportunity does this provide for us to start new churches? B. Bangkok is the industrial center for Thailand. Many factory workers are from rural areas, and making adjustments to the new life in the city. Several members of the church own factories of various kinds. One of these has already established a church of 44 members among the workers in his factory. Can this be done in factories of other church members? C. Bangkok i s the educational center for the country. There are thousands of students from up-country in the high schools, colleges, universities, vocational schools, etc. These young people are away from home, adjusting to a new kind of life. They are open to new friends. What opportunity does this give us for Christian work? D. Look at the map showing the distribution of the membership of the Yellow Bridge Church. Does

146 this indicate any possibilities for the starting new branch churches?

of

1. Thonburi area (80 Sapan Luang families), five to seven miles from the church. 2. Klong Tan area (20 families), site of our middle school, seven m i l e s from thechurch. 3 . Sapan Kwai area (20 families), five miles from the church. 4. Trok Chan area (40 families), three from the church.

miles

147 LECTURE SEVEN

What Goals Should We Set for Growth? I.

• II.

Light from the Word of God A. Matthew 28:18-20, Romans 12:1-8 1. Christ’s command to evangelize. 2. Christ’s promise of His presence and power. 3. .Our offering to Christ. 4. Our varied’ministry. • r• Planning for greater biological growth. A. .There is a large number of people in church families who have not experienced Christ personally and joined in His work. (Cite data tabulated from the survey.) B. Formation of visitation teams, both adult and young people, to visit these families to show Christian love, solve spiritual problems, and encourage all the members to an active Christian life. C . Fellowship groups and Bible study in homes in various areas of the city where there i s both need and opportunity.

III. Planning for factory evangelism. A. Get factory owners in the church together to discuss methods and share experiences of leading their employees to faith in Christ. B. Organize and train teams to do evangelism in factories. IV. Planning for the organization of two new congregations in the next four years. A. Klong Tan - using the chapel of the middle school.

148

B. Thonburi - using land belonging to one of the members of the church. V. Starting of many house churches. A. Invite Elder Tsang Siu Min from Hongkong to come and' share his experiences of establishing house churches in Hongkong. B. Seek families who are willing to use their homes for worship, Bible study, prayer, fellowship, and witness. C. Set up a training program for leaders of house churches.

149

BIBLIOGRAPHY

ALEXANDER, GARTH 1973 The Invisible China New York, Macmillan Publishing Co., Inc. BACKUS, MARY (editor) 1884 Siam and Laos, As Seen by Our Missionaries Philadelphia, Presbyterian Board of Publication BAND, EDWARD 1947 Working His Purpose Out (History of the English Presbyterian Mission 1847-1947) London, Presbyterian Church of England BEAVER, R. PIERCE 1968 The Missionary Between the Times Garden City, N.Y., Doubleday and Co., Inc. BLANCHARD, WENDELL 1958 Thailand New Haven, HRAF Press BOER, HARRY R. 1961 Pentecost and Missions Grand Rapids, William B. Eerdmans Co. BOWRING, JOHN 1857 The Kingdom and People of Siam 2 vols. London, Parker

150

BROWN, ARTHUR J . 19 25 The Expectation of Siam New York, Presbyterian Board of Foreign Missions 1936

One Hundred Years New York, Fleming H. Revell Co.

CHEN, TA 1940 Emigrant Communities in South China New York, Institute of Pacific Relations CHUA, WEE HIAN 1971 “Evangelizing the Chinese of the Diaspora” Evangelical Missions Quarterly Fall 1971, pp. 23-31. 1975

“Evangelization of Whole Families” Let the Earth Hear His Voice (Lausanne Report) Minneapolis, World Wide Publications, pp. 968-976.

COMBER, LEON 1957 Chinese Ancestor Worship in Malaya Singapore, Donald Moore COUGHLIN, RICHARD J . 1953 Chinese in Bangkok: A Study of Cultural Persistence Ann Arbor, University Microfilms, Inc. 1960

Double Identity Hongkong, Hongkong University Press

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